Department of Health and Social Care

Pharmacy

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many consultations have been carried out each week as part of Pharmacy First since its launch.

Andrea Leadsom: 98 percent of pharmacies have signed up to Deliver Pharmacy First and claimed more than 125,000 clinical pathways consultations for February, the first full month following launch. From May, the NHS Business Services Authority will publish monthly data on the number of consultations claimed.

NHS 111: Dental Health

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2024 to Question 19659 on NHS 111: Dental Health, if she will provide breakdown of calls by symptom group by region.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Pharmacy: Finance

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to increase the scope of the Pharmacy First programme.

Andrea Leadsom: Pharmacy First was launched on 31 January 2024, and as the service embeds, we will monitor and evaluate the service, and keep the conditions covered by Pharmacy First under review.

Pharmacy: Finance

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she plans to increase core community pharmacy funding.

Andrea Leadsom: As part of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework five-year deal, we committed £2.6 billion every year to community pharmacy, and agreed not to recover £212 million in over delivered fees and margin from community pharmacies in recent years. In addition, we are now investing up to £645 million across 2023/24 and 2024/25 in Pharmacy First, for more blood pressure checks and more contraception consultations in pharmacy. We have begun the consultation with Community Pharmacy England on the national funding and contractual framework arrangements for 2024/25.

Health Services and Pharmacy: Easington

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of pharmacies that have closed in Easington since 2019; and if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of these closures on primary care services.

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the closure of community pharmacies on the communities.

Andrea Leadsom: There were 21 physical pharmacies on 31 December 2023 in Easington constituency. Between 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2023, two pharmacies closed in Easington constituency. However, access remains good. 85 percent of the population in Easington live within a 20-minute walk from a pharmacy. This exceeds the national average of 80 percent. Residents of Easington can also access services from distance selling pharmacies that operate nationally.It is the statutory duty of local authorities in England to undertake pharmaceutical needs assessments for their areas, every three years, to ensure provision continues to meet their population’s needs. Integrated care boards have regard to those assessments when commissioning services and where a pharmacy closure impacts on the access to services, a new contractor can apply to open a pharmacy in the area.

Spectacles: Children

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 March 2024 to Question 16241 on Spectacles: Irlen Syndrome, what financial support is available to low-income families to help fund prescription glasses for children where the cost of the prescription exceeds the £50 NHS voucher cost.

Andrea Leadsom: NHS optical vouchers are available for children to help with the cost of glasses that correct a defect in sight. There are ten optical voucher values ranging from £42.40 to £233.56, depending on the strength of the optical lenses. The cost of glasses will be set by individual optical practices and because prices can vary, we would always advise individuals to shop around.

Electronic Cigarettes

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of her legislative proposals on vaping on trends in the level of (a) smokers who will quit and (b) ex-smokers who will relapse.

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans her Department has to assess the impact of regulation of vape (a) flavours, (b) packaging and product presentation and (c) point of sale displays on (i) quit rates of smokers and (ii) relapse rates of smokers who have switched to vaping.

Andrea Leadsom: The health advice on vaping is clear, if you don’t smoke, don’t vape, and children should never vape. However, youth vaping has tripled in the last three years, and one in five children have now used a vape.The Tobacco and Vapes Bill will crack down on youth vaping by providing powers to regulate flavours, displays, and packaging for vapes and nicotine pouches. It will ban free vape samples being given to children, and introduce an age of sale for non-nicotine vapes.In doing this, we must strike the right balance between reducing the appeal of vapes to children while ensuring vapes remain attractive and available to adult smokers as a quit aid. This will be carefully considered in the development of any specific restrictions, and further consultation will take place before introducing any regulations. As stated in Parliament during the second reading of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, we intend to hold the consultation on the regulations before the end of this Parliament, if practicable. We will also undertake an impact assessment to consider the potential impact of these regulations on smokers as well as other groups.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to support women with a genetic history of breast cancer to access screening services in (a) England and (b) Leicestershire.

Andrew Stephenson: In Leicestershire and nationwide, women with a very high risk (VHR) of breast cancer due to family history may be offered screening earlier and more often, as part of the NHS Breast Screening Programme.Women formally identified as eligible for VHR breast screening are referred to the National Health Service breast screening service associated with their general practice. They are eligible to be screened from the age of 25 years old upwards, and should be invited every year. The diagnostic screen includes mammography or magnetic resonance imaging, depending on age and risk criteria, and is therefore not the same as the routine breast screening service. To support screening of VHR women, a new central database is planned to ensure all referrals reach NHS breast screening services.

Diabetes: Eating Disorders

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has received representations from (a) healthcare professionals, (b) patient advocacy groups and (c) local authorities on discontinuing Type 1 diabetes and disordered eating services.

Andrew Stephenson: My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care engages with a range of external stakeholders, including discussions on Type 1 Diabetes with Disordered Eating (T1DE) services. NHS England is working closely with regional and integrated care board (ICB) level teams to ensure that informed decisions are made about the future provision of T1DE services. Responsibility for the commissioning of T1DE services sits with the ICBs. It is the role of local ICB decision makers to consider the implications of continuing or discontinuing T1DE services, specific to each location, and including the perspectives of healthcare professionals, patient advocacy groups, and local authorities.

Pharmacy

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help community pharmacies with increases in the cost of medications.

Andrew Stephenson: The Drug Tariff, published monthly, sets out the amount that will be paid to contractors for National Health Services in England, including both product reimbursement and service remuneration.Where pharmacies cannot purchase products at or below the Drug Tariff NHS reimbursement price, Community Pharmacy England can request that the Department reassesses the reimbursement price. If a new reimbursement price is issued within the month, this is known as a concessionary price.In addition, from 1 April 2024, we introduced a new retrospective top-up payment for concessionary prices, providing an additional payment to contractors when the margin survey indicates that despite a concessionary price, there was an under payment.

Pharmacy: Closures

Sir Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of community pharmacy closures on other NHS services.

Sir Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many pharmacies have closed in Worthing West constituency since 2019; and what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of these closures on NHS primary care services in Worthing West constituency.

Andrea Leadsom: There were 19 pharmacies in Worthing West constituency on 31 December 2023. Between 31 December 2019 and 31 December 2023, three pharmacies closed and no new pharmacies opened in Worthing West.Access to pharmaceutical services remains good. 99 percent of the population in Worthing West live within a 20-minute walk from a pharmacy. This exceeds the national average of 80 percent. In addition, residents of Worthing West can access distance selling pharmacies that operate nationally.It is the role of local authorities in England to undertake pharmaceutical needs assessments for their areas, every three years, to ensure provision continues to meet their population’s needs. Integrated care boards have regard to those assessments when commissioning services and where a pharmacy closure impacts on the access to services, a new contractor can apply to open a pharmacy in the area.

Lymphedema: Medical Treatments

Peter Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing lymphaticovenous anastomosis surgery on the NHS.

Andrew Stephenson: No formal assessment has been made of the potential merits of providing lymphaticovenous anastomosis surgery on the National Health Service. On 16 April 2024, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published interventional procedures guidance that states that lymphovenous anastomosis during axillary dissection for preventing secondary lymphoedema in adults with breast cancer, can be used in the NHS while more evidence is generated, and that it can only be used with special arrangements for clinical governance, consent and audit, or research. The NICE’s interventional procedures guidance makes recommendations for the NHS on whether procedures are sufficiently safe and efficacious for use in routine clinical practice.

Diabetes: Health Services

Sir George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of discontinuing funding for T1DE pilot schemes on the health and well-being of patients living with type 1 diabetes with disordered eating.

Andrew Stephenson: NHS England has provided funding for eight integrated care boards (ICBs) across the country to support the development and establishment of Type 1 Diabetes with Disordered Eating (T1DE) services in every National Health Service region. Funding has been provided on a pump prime basis, and the responsibility for the longer-term sustainable provision of care for these patients sits with the relevant integrated care system.A nationally commissioned evaluation has shown the positive impact that the provision of T1DE services can have for patients, including reductions in HbA1c, which is linked to reduced rates of diabetes complications, and reduced rates of emergency admissions.It’s the role of the ICBs to consider the health needs of their populations, in making decisions about the care that is provided. It is expected that ICB leads consider these evaluation findings alongside the risk to patient health and wellbeing of the discontinuation of service provision, as well as other local contextual factors in making decisions about the future provision of T1DE services.

General Practitioners: Wellingborough

Gen Kitchen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of GP surgeries are rated as Good by the CQC in Wellingborough constituency.

Maria Caulfield: 90% of general practice locations in Wellingborough are currently rated by the Care Quality Commission as Good overall.

Childbirth: Autism

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she has taken to ensure that effective support is provided to autistic women (a) during and (b) after childbirth.

Maria Caulfield: The Health and Care Act 2022 requires Care Quality Commission registered providers, which includes maternity services, to ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism, appropriate to their role. We are rolling out the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism to support this. This training will help to ensure that staff have the right skills and knowledge to provide safe and compassionate care, including how to provide reasonable adjustments for autistic people.NHS England is also working to improve the use and recording of reasonable adjustments to make it easier for autistic people to use health services, by ensuring care is tailored appropriately. This includes the development of a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag, which will enable the recording of key information about a patient, including if a person is autistic, and their reasonable adjustment needs, to ensure support can be tailored appropriately.

Neurodiversity: Lewisham

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many women and girls  are waiting for (a) autism and (b) ADHD assessments in the London Borough of Lewisham; and what the average waiting time is for such assessments.

Maria Caulfield: The information requested is not held centrally, but may be held by individual providers or integrated care boards (ICBs). However, some relevant information is available for autism assessments. In the NHS South East London ICB, in December 2023, there were a total of 1425 patients with an open suspected autism referral. The median waiting time of patients in this ICB with an open suspected autism referral, where their first care contact was in the quarter, was 545 days. Across England, in December 2023, 80,718 female patients had an open suspected autism referral.

Blood: Contamination

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to implement the recommendations of the Second interim report of the Infected Blood inquiry on psychological services.

Maria Caulfield: A bespoke psychological support service for infected blood victims, commissioned by NHS England, is currently being developed, and is planned to go live in early summer 2024.

Coronavirus: Disease Control

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has taken recent steps to help increase the supply of free lateral flow tests to people who are at risk of becoming seriously ill if they contract covid-19.

Maria Caulfield: This year, the National Health Service will offer free COVID-19 lateral flow tests and treatments to an additional 1.4 million people at the highest risk of severe illness, on top of the 3.9 million people already eligible for free COVID-19 lateral flow tests and treatments.Those who are at highest risk of becoming seriously ill, who are eligible for COVID-19 treatments, can continue to access free COVID-19 lateral flow tests from their local pharmacy. This cohort of people are encouraged to test regularly, to gain timely access to treatments. A full list of those who are eligible, as well as information on how to access the tests, is available at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/covid-19/treatments-for-covid-19/

NHS: Civil Proceedings and Complaints

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of trends in the level of (a) complaints and (b) litigation claims against the NHS; and what steps she is taking to support the resolution of those complaints.

Maria Caulfield: There are a range of factors that affect trends in the level of complaints and litigation claims against the National Health Service, that go beyond the Department’s policies. On complaints, factors that affect trends include things like how well NHS organisations resolve concerns before they escalate to written complaints, and how well publicised and accessible their complaints handling processes are. To support effective resolution of complaints, we have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards, which set out how organisations providing services in the NHS should approach complaint handling to ensure they are handled and resolved effectively.NHS Resolution (NHSR) manages clinical negligence and other claims against the NHS in England. NHSR is committed to helping the NHS learn from claims. It is working directly with providers of healthcare services, alongside other national and local bodies working on patient safety, to share learning and best practice across the NHS, to drive safety improvement. In 2022, NHSR published a new three-year strategy which extends and enhances its focus on prevention, learning, and early intervention following incidents of harm. NHSR is committed to improving the claims process, including innovative approaches to dispute resolution. This work includes a number of pilots exploring various dispute resolution techniques which can result in faster resolution and reduced legal costs for both sides.

Sodium Valproate and Surgical Mesh Implants: Compensation

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when her Department plans to make a decision on financial redress for those harmed by pelvic mesh or sodium valproate.

Maria Caulfield: The Government commissioned the Patient Safety Commissioner to produce a report on redress for those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. We are grateful to the Commissioner and her team for completing this report and our sympathies remain with those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. The Government is now carefully considering the Commissioner’s recommendations and will respond substantively in due course.

Maternity Services: Labour Turnover

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of maternity staff leaving NHS employment on services.

Maria Caulfield: The Department works with NHS England on a regular basis to review the numbers of staff working in National Health Service maternity services, and to identify any issues which could potentially impact services.Growing, retaining, and supporting the maternity workforce to ensure that there are staff with the capacity and the right skills to deliver safe, personalised, and equitable care for women and babies is a key theme of NHS England’s Three Year Delivery Plan for Maternity and Neonatal Services. NHS England is also delivering a nursing and midwifery retention programme, supporting organisations in assessing themselves against a bundle of interventions aligned to the NHS People Promise, and to develop high-quality local retention improvement plans.

Menopause: Neurodiversity

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to assess the healthcare needs of women with autism and ADHD during menopause.

Maria Caulfield: No specific assessment has been made. Menopause is a priority area within the Women’s Health Strategy, and the Department and National Health Service are implementing an ambitious programme of work to improve menopause care so all women, including those with autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), can access the support they need. Integrated care boards (ICBs) are responsible for providing services that meet the needs of their local population. Every ICB is expected to have an Executive Lead for learning disability and autism, whose remit includes supporting the board in addressing the health inequalities that autistic people and people with a learning disability experience, and supporting equal access to care across all health services. From 1 July 2022, the Health and Care Act 2022 requires Care Quality Commission registered providers to ensure their staff receive specific training on learning disability and autism, appropriate to their role. Since November 2022, over 1.7 million people have completed the first part of Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism. In addition, NHS England is improving the use and recording of reasonable adjustments to ensure care is tailored appropriately for disabled people, including people with autism and ADHD.

Perinatal Mortality

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has taken steps with NHS England to ensure that parents who have experienced stillbirth or neonatal death are (a) encouraged and (b) supported to (i) ask questions and (ii) talk about their experience as part of the NHS review of their care.

Maria Caulfield: The Perinatal Mortality Review Tool (PMRT) provides robust and standardised reviews for bereaved parents about why their baby died. The tool’s aim is to also ensure local and national learning to improve care and prevent future baby deaths. All trusts and health boards across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland are using the PMRT.On 14 December 2023, Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK published their fifth annual PMRT report. The report found that most trusts and health boards ensure all bereaved parents were made aware of the PMRT and review process in their unit, and 95% reported that they offer parents the opportunity to share their thoughts, questions, or concerns about any aspect of their care for the review to address.

Perinatal Mortality: Software

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many Perinatal Mortality Review Tool reviews into (a) stillbirths and (b) baby deaths had an external panel member in the last year.

Maria Caulfield: This information is not held in the format requested. On 14 December 2023, Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK published their fifth annual Perinatal Mortality Review Tool report. The report presents data from the 4,111 reviews conducted between March 2022 to February 2023. The report sets out that an external member was present in 45% of reviews, which is an increase from only one in three involving an external member from the previous year. An external panel member is strongly recommended due to the importance of providing fresh eyes to support the review.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that staffing levels of mental health professionals in the NHS meet levels of demand for their services.

Maria Caulfield: To deliver the NHS Long Term Plan’s mental health commitments and help reduce waiting times, our aim has been to grow the mental health workforce nationally by an additional 27,000 professionals by March 2024.We are making positive progress, delivering three quarters of this, or approximately 20,800 new professionals, by December 2023, with further growth expected to have been achieved once the full year figures for 2023/24 are available. This growth is in addition to the commitment to grow the National Health Service’s mental health workforce by 19,000 between 2016/17 and 2020/21, as set out in Stepping Forward to 2020/21: the mental health workforce plan for England, which was achieved in September 2021.At a national level, we are committed to attracting, training, and recruiting the mental health workforce of the future, as well as retaining and developing our current workforce. The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan’s modelling projections set out a need to grow the overall mental health and learning disability workforce the fastest of all care settings, at 4.4% per year up to 2036/37, to help improve access to services and quality of care.

NHS: Standards

Sir George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the rate of public satisfaction with the NHS was in (a) February 2024 or (b) the most recent month and year that data has been collected.

Sir George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of public satisfaction with the NHS.

Maria Caulfield: Data regarding the rate of public satisfaction with the National Health Service is publicly accessible, and is available at the following link:https://yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/explore/institution/NHSMy Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care takes public perceptions of the NHS into account in her policy decisions. We have published recovery plans for elective services, urgent and emergency care, primary care and dental care, to improve access and performance of crucial NHS services.Furthermore, we have made a great deal of progress in putting patients at the heart of care, through our recently announced programmes to expand choice, advanced care planning conversations, personal health budgets, and by providing more information to patients.

Maternity Services: Finance

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding has been allocated to the Maternity and Newborn Safety Investigation programme; and whether that funding is time limited.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has allocated £16 million to the Maternity and Newborn Safety Investigations Programme for this financial year, which is the last year of this spending review period. Future budgets will be allocated in the usual way as part of the next Spending Review.The lifespan of the programme is under review and will continue to be overseen by the Care Quality Commission, until directed otherwise by the Department. The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is funding an evaluation to understand whether Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch investigations and Perinatal Mortality Review Tool reviews have met their anticipated requirements, resulted in system level quality improvements in maternity care, and improved outcomes for parents and families.

Health Services: Disability

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Care Quality Commission in enforcement of the Accessible Information Standard across the NHS.

Maria Caulfield: Compliance with the Accessible Information Standard (AIS) is not directly assured by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). However, the performance of organisations in meeting people’s needs is considered in CQC assessment and ratings. Where the CQC has information through NHS England’s AIS self-assessment framework, or other sources, that an organisation is not meeting accessible communication needs, it can use its regulatory powers. NHS England has completed a review of the AIS to help ensure that everyone’s communications needs are met in health and care provision. An AIS self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of National Health Service and social care services, to measure their performance against the AIS and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation. The AIS self-assessment framework is designed to enable enhancements around assurance and allows organisations, commissioners, and the CQC to judge performance and compliance.

General Practitioners and Pharmacy: ICT

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that the IT systems used by (a) GPs and (b) community pharmacists enable the provision of one set of patient records.

Andrea Leadsom: The Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care announced plans to significantly improve the digital infrastructure between general practices (GPs) and community pharmacies. This will see GPs and community pharmacies viewing and contributing to a single patient record via their respective IT systems. For example, the functionality to update the GP patient record will see pharmacy consultation outcomes arriving directly into the GP’s workflow for review and action, which will be rolled out in April and May 2024. The functionality to view all required information from the GP patient record from within the community pharmacy clinical system, will be rolled out in summer.

Health and Care Act 2022

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when she plans to implement section 95 of the Health and Care Act 2022.

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how her Department plans to use Section 95 (3) 251ZA Information Standards (Compliance) of the Health and Care Act 2022 to ensure that NHS providers meet the communication needs of patients set out in the Accessible Information Standard.

Maria Caulfield: The Department plans to implement Section 95 later this year. This will be subject to Parliament’s approval of the regulations setting out the procedure for preparing and publishing mandatory information standards, on which the Department has recently consulted.Once Section 95 is in force and compliance with information standards becomes mandatory, the Department will use section 251ZA, where appropriate, to monitor compliance with information standards, including by requiring National Health Service providers and others to whom information standards apply, to provide information for this purpose.NHS England is responsible for the Accessible Information Standard (AIS), and plans to update the AIS to take account of the statutory approach to information standards in due course. NHS England has also completed a review of the AIS to help ensure that the communication needs of people with a disability, impairment, or sensory loss are met in health and care provision. One of the aims of the review was to strengthen assurance of implementation of the AIS, and a self-assessment framework has been developed to support providers of NHS and social care services to measure their performance against the AIS, and develop improvement action plans to address gaps in implementation.NHS England will publish a revised AIS in due course. Following publication, NHS England will continue work to support its implementation with awareness raising, communication and engagement, and updated e-learning modules on the AIS, to ensure NHS staff are better aware of the standard, and their roles and responsibilities in implementing it.

Mental Health Services: Waiting Lists

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of trends in the level of average waiting times for receiving NHS mental health (a) treatment and (b) other support services on the (i) wellbeing and (ii) employment of patients requiring those services.

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the impact of trends in the number of patients waiting for mental health treatment on the economy.

Maria Caulfield: While no such assessments have been made, through the NHS Long Term Plan the Government is providing record levels of investment and increasing the mental health workforce, to expand and transform National Health Service mental health services in England, helping to reduce waiting times. The NHS is also working towards implementing new waiting time measures for people requiring mental healthcare in both accident and emergency and in the community, to increase transparency, drive improvements in the quality of data, promote timely access to the most appropriate and high-quality support, and drive accountability in local systems.The 2023 Spring Budget contained a package of over £400 million to support the long-term sick and disabled in remaining in or entering employment. This included approximately £75 million for the expansion of the Individual Placement and Support scheme, to help people with severe mental illness into employment. At the 2023 Autumn Statement, we announced a further £795 million of funding to increase the number of sessions per course of Talking Therapies treatment and broaden access, leading to an expected additional 384,000 people completing a course of treatment by 2028/29. It will also fund an additional 100,000 Individual Placement and Support places over five years, which will help people with severe mental illness gain and retain paid employment.

Pharmacy: Vaccination

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department has plans to make (a) adult MMR and (b) shingles vaccines available in community pharmacies for people who meet the NHS eligibility criteria.

Maria Caulfield: Routine vaccinations, including the shingles vaccine, are not currently available at community pharmacies via the National Health Service. This is with the exception of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine where, in response to the current measles outbreak, some areas have stood up community pharmacy sites on a time-limited basis, to deliver the MMR vaccine to specific cohorts.The NHS vaccination strategy signals an intent to give local systems the responsibility and flexibility to design and deliver vaccination services to meet their population needs. This includes commissioning the optimal provider network, which may include community pharmacy and hospital hubs, and continuing to use the expertise of primary care, including general practices and practice nurses, to maximise uptake.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Sixth-Fifth Report of the Committee on Public Accounts of Session 2022-23 on Progress in improving NHS mental health services, HC 1000, if she will make an assessment of the reasons for the reported shortage of mental health professionals in the NHS workforce.

Maria Caulfield: We are committed to attracting, training, and recruiting the mental health workforce of the future, as well as retaining and developing our current workforce. Since 2016, we have expanded and diversified the types of roles that are available, as well as upskilling and transforming the workforce to deliver innovative models of care. However, while there have been significant increases, we acknowledge that the rise in demand for services means that more growth is needed to improve and expand services, to keep in line with this. The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan sets out the need to grow the overall mental health and learning disability workforce the fastest of all care settings, at 4.4% per year up to 2036/37. To support this ambition, the plan sets out a number of targeted interventions for the mental health workforce, including increasing mental health training places by 13% by 2025/26 and 28% by 2028/29. These interventions will be delivered via partnerships working across the Department of Health and Social Care, integrated care systems and providers, as well as with wider partners such as the Department for Education and Office for Students.

Bowel Cancer: Greater Manchester

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of bowel cancer diagnosis services in (a) Stockport and (b) Greater Manchester.

Andrew Stephenson: The Department continues to take steps to improve early diagnosis for all cancers, which encompasses bowel cancer, and in all areas, including Stockport and Greater Manchester. The Department is working jointly with NHS England on implementing the Delivery Plan for Tackling the COVID-19 Backlog of Elective Care, which includes plans to spend more than £8 billion from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to help drive up and protect elective activity, including cancer diagnosis and treatment.NHS England is working to meet the Faster Diagnosis Standard (FDS), which sets a target of 28 days from urgent referral by a general practitioner or screening programme to patients being told that they have cancer, or that cancer is ruled out. To achieve this target, NHS England has: streamlined bowel cancer pathways by implementing faecal immunochemical testing (FIT) triage for patients in primary and secondary care settings; implemented non-symptom specific pathways for patients; and opened community diagnostic centres across England, prioritising this capacity for cancer services. The latest published data from February 2024 shows FDS performance was 78.1% nationally. More specifically to bowel cancer, the latest published data shows that at a national level, the number of people diagnosed with bowel cancer has risen to 41,596 in 2021, compared to 37,702 diagnosed in 2019. Since the FIT kit was introduced into the bowel cancer screening programme in April 2019, national uptake has increased from 59.2% to 67.8%. the latest data for the North-West region shows that 64.3% of 60 to 74-year-olds completed their bowel screening in the first quarter of 2023/24.In 2023 the NHS England’s Help Us Help You campaign urged people to take up the offer of bowel screening when invited, and the screening offer for the bowel screening programme is being gradually extended from age 60 down to 50 years old by 2025, ensuring more people are screened and potentially diagnosed with bowel cancer at the earliest stage.   NHS England is also now offering routine preventative bowel cancer screening to people with Lynch syndrome, with 94% of people on average receiving the test between 2021 and 2023, up from 47% in 2019.

Incontinence: Health Services

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make it her policy to make an assessment of the potential impact of any proposed amendments to Part IX of the Drug Tariff on (a) patients with continence care needs, (b) continence care services, (c) the range of continence devices available to clinicians and patients and (d) new product development and innovation in medical devices in the continence sector.

Andrew Stephenson: Part IX will remain a list of devices available to be prescribed in the community, via the FP10 prescription route. The Department believes that it is currently difficult to identify which devices are broadly comparable, and whether more expensive devices provide added value. The proposed amendments that were consulted on were intended to increase meaningful choice, not to decrease the choice for clinicians and patients. Comparison between products can increase awareness of different brands amongst prescribers, which can support small and medium sized businesses in entering the market.The consultation response on the proposed amendments to Part IX is expected to be released in May 2024, which will outline the Government’s response. Any amendments that are taken forward will happen gradually, with review points and engagement with stakeholders, including industry, patient representatives, clinicians, and National Health Service organisations. We are aware that there are some very good devices in use, relied upon by clinicians and patients.

Prosthetics

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of the supply of prostheses to NHS patients.

Andrew Stephenson: NHS England commissions 35 prosthetic centres in England to provide specialised prosthetic services. NHS England completed a Prosthetic Services Review between 2018 and 2022, which was paused during the COVID-19 pandemic. The recommendations from the review have been incorporated within the service specification, Complex Disability Equipment – Prosthetic Specialised Services For People Of All Ages With Limb Loss, which has been updated in line with the service Specification Methods process, and will be subject to stakeholder testing during April 2024.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

East Africa: Food Supply

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent assessment he has made of the food security situation in East Africa; and what steps his Department is taking to alleviate the problems.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Balkans: Politics and Government

Alicia Kearns: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for the regional security of the Balkans of the (a) meeting between the President of Serbia, the President of Republika Srpska and Patriarch Porifirije and (b) planned joint Easter Assembly between Serbia and Republika Srpska.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Following the 18 March meeting between Serbian President Vucic, the President of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik and the Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, President Vucic announced an Easter Assembly in Serbia on 5-6 May, with participants from Serbia and ethnic Serb communities across the region. A similar initiative was held in 2017. We are following developments closely. We encourage Serbia, and all involved, to promote good neighbourly relations across the region, and to avoid divisive and inflammatory rhetoric. The Prime Minister's Western Balkans Envoy did so most recently during his 8 April visit to Belgrade.

Far East and India: Diplomatic Service

Catherine West: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how many UK-based staff from his Department worked in (a) HM Embassy or the High Commission and (b) Consulates General, Consulates or Deputy High Commissions in (i) China, (ii) South Korea, (iii) Vietnam, (iv) the Philippines, (v) India and (vi) the Asia Pacific region in 2023.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Mar24 UKB Data   LocationAB(v)India30-3910-19(iv)Philippines10-19No UKB Staff(ii)South Korea10-19No UKB Staff(iii)Vietnam10-19Fewer than 10(vi)Asia Pacific Region180-199Fewer than 10ScopeBritish EmbassyABritish High CommissionABritish ConsulateBBritish Consulate GeneralBBritish Deputy High CommissionBCountries in Scope of Asia Pacific RegionAustraliaBruneiCambodiaFijiIndonesiaSouth KoreaLaosMalaysiaMyanmarNew ZealandPapua New GuineaPhilippinesSamoaSingaporeSolomon IslandsThailandTongaVanuatuVietnamStaff in scope: UKB Headcount data is presented as at: Mar24 Locations:China (Withheld), India, Philippines, South Korea, Vietnam (Part (i) to (v), see list for (Part (vi). Staff out of scope: Contingent Labour, Unpaid Liabilities, Ministers / NeDs / SpAds etc, third party suppliers, Staff working for other government departments, CB staff. Headcounts are banded for release in line with advice from FCDO Information and Cyber Security Unit.

West Bank: Terrorism

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the terror attack in the southern West Bank on 19 March 2024.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: This terror attack serves as a reminder of the daily security challenges Israel faces. There can be no justification for such acts of violence. Every Israeli and Palestinian has the right to live in peace and security. As we have stated previously, for there to be a lasting peace, Israel's security must be assured. We continue to monitor the situation closely, and we continue to have regular discussions with Israeli counterparts on all aspects of the conflict.

Israel: Arms Trade

Richard Burgon: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with his Canadian counterpart on the reasons for which that country has suspended arms exports to Israel.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We have regular engagement with our allies, including Canada, on the conflict. Canada has made clear that, while it has not approved new licences for military equipment since 8 January of this year, it has not suspended extant licences approved before that date.

Israel and Palestinians: Aid Workers

Hywel Williams: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the safety of aid workers operating in (a) Israel and (b) Palestine.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps his Department is taking to help implement effective deconfliction in Gaza in order to facilitate the safe delivery of humanitarian aid.

Hywel Williams: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of reports that a UNICEF humanitarian convoy was hit by live ammunition in northern Gaza on 9 April 2024.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign Secretary has called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.The Prime Minister set out the need for more aid to enter Gaza in his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 2 April, and that far too many aid workers and ordinary civilians have lost their lives.

Israel and Occupied Territories: Aid Workers

Nadia Whittome: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent assessment he has made of the level of risk to the safety of aid workers in (a) Israel and (b) the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and what steps he is taking to help protect (i) international aid agencies and (ii) their employees from (A) threats and (B) other hindrance.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign Secretary has called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.The Prime Minister set out the need for more aid to enter Gaza in his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 2 April, and that far too many aid workers and ordinary civilians have lost their lives.

Indo-pacific Region: Warships

Catherine West: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what (a) diplomatic and (b) cultural steps his Department plans to take with the Secretary of State for Defence to support the planned Carrier Strike Group deployment to the Asia Pacific in 2025.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Carrier Strike Group deployment in 2025 will reinforce the UK's commitment to upholding international security, including in the Indo-Pacific, and will strengthen our broad-based partnerships across the region. The FCDO will be closely involved in planning for the deployment, as it develops, as part of an established Cross Government process.

Hong Kong: British National (Overseas)

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the safety of British National (Overseas) passport holders in Hong Kong.

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what diplomatic support his Department provides to British National (Overseas) passport holders in Hong Kong.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Under an exchange of Memoranda to the Sino-British Joint Declaration, British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) passport holders are eligible for consular assistance in third countries, but not in Hong Kong, Macao or mainland China. Where we have humanitarian or human rights concerns about the treatment of BN(O) passport holders in Hong Kong, Macao or mainland China, we can lobby the relevant authorities, raise issues in international fora and demonstrate our political support. For example, on 8 March, we raised the alleged treatment of Andy Li at the UN Human Rights Council. Our diplomats in Hong Kong regularly attend court to observe a number of national security cases, including for Jimmy Lai's, the NSL 47 and others. On 16 February, the Foreign Secretary raised prosecutions under the National Security Law with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Munich Security Conference.

Taiwan: Earthquakes

Catherine West: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what support his Department offered to Taiwan after the recent earthquake.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: Following the earthquake, the Foreign Secretary issued a statement offering condolences to the people of Taiwan and stating that the UK stood ready to support. The UK's International Search and Rescue team made contact with the relevant Taiwanese authorities. No request for assistance was made by Taiwan.

Vietnam: Foreign Relations

Catherine West: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent discussions he has had with his Vietnamese counterpart on furthering the bilateral relationship.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: I visited Vietnam from 25-27 October 2023 to attend the South China Sea Conference and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) South East Asia Ministerial Forum, and to discuss regional security, investment and economic development. The UK and Vietnam continue to have positive cooperation on long-term strategic priorities such as energy transition and adaptation to climate change, maritime security in line with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, illegal immigration, trade, technology and investment, and on education and research partnerships. Permanent Under-Secretary Sir Philip Barton recently visited Vietnam on 25 March to meet with Vietnamese ministries to discuss further cooperation in these areas.

Hong Kong: Civil Liberties

Catherine West: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether the (a) Prime Minister and (b) Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has raised the impact of Article 23 of the Basic Law on Hong Kong's (i) autonomy and (ii) civil liberties with his Chinese counterpart.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Foreign Secretary made a second statement on Hong Kong's new national security law (Article 23) on 19 March, in which he made clear our view that it will further damage the rights and freedoms enjoyed in the city. He stated that we expect the Hong Kong authorities to respect the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Basic Law, uphold its high degree of autonomy and act in accordance with its international commitments and legal obligations. We continue to raise our firm objection to the erosion of rights and freedoms in Hong Kong at the highest levels of government. The Prime Minister raised Hong Kong with Premier Li Qiang on 20 September at the G20 and the Foreign Secretary last raised Hong Kong with his counterpart, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on 16 February at the Munich Security Conference.

Terrorism

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the attack on Crocus City Concert Hall in Moscow on terror threat levels in the UK.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The UK condemns in the strongest terms the deadly terrorist attack at the Crocus City concert hall in Moscow and we express our deepest sympathy to the families of the many victims. We support the US assessment that Da'esh or their so-called Islamic State Khorasan Province branch is responsible. The threat level for the UK from terrorism is set by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre. It is kept under regular review.

Ukraine: Children

Nicola Richards: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the return of Ukrainian children unlawfully deported by the Russianauthorities.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We call upon Russia to cease these deportations immediately and return all Ukrainian children. In June 2022, we sanctioned the Russian Children's Rights Commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, and in June 2023, we announced new sanctions against 10 Russian officials and one entity involved. We have provided funding to the International Criminal Court and support to the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine. The UK is also now a member of the 'International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children'. We are determined to hold to account those responsible for forcibly deporting and attempting to indoctrinate Ukrainian children.

Ukraine: Russia

Neil Coyle: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether his Department is taking steps through the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative to help support Ukrainian officials to investigate alleged acts of sexual violence by Russian forces since 2022.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The UK is working with Ukrainian authorities to hold those responsible for gender-based violence, including conflict-related sexual violence, in Ukraine to account. The UK has committed up to £6.2 million to enhance Ukraine's domestic capacity for war crimes investigations and to help embed international guidelines and best practice into the work of Ukrainian prosecutors and investigators, including on survivor-centred approaches. This assistance has been largely delivered through projects via the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group for Ukraine, established with the US and EU, and deployments of UK experts, including the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) Team of Experts.

Burundi: Diplomatic Relations

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what diplomatic support he is providing to Burundi after the closure of that country's border with Rwanda in January 2024.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK regrets the impact that the closure of the border between Burundi and Rwanda is having on local communities and hopes to see it reopened. Most recently, the British Ambassador raised these concerns with the Burundian Foreign Minister on 19 March. We encourage the Government of Burundi to engage with Rwanda on this issue and support further dialogue to enable a swift political solution.

Pakistan: Elections

Alison Thewliss: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of reports of electoral irregularities in the Pakistani general election of 8 February 2024; and whether he has had discussions with his Pakistani counterpart on allowing an impartial and fair investigation of such irregularities.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK has a longstanding and close relationship with Pakistan. Following the general election in Pakistan on 8 February, the Foreign Secretary issued a statement which recognised the serious concerns raised about the fairness and lack of inclusivity of the elections. He underlined these points in a call with Pakistan's new Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, on 25 March. The UK encourages Pakistani authorities to examine all allegations carefully and take steps to address any irregularities.

Mongolia: Visits Abroad

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs plans to visit Mongolia.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The UK highly values its relationship with Mongolia. Last year we celebrated 60 years of diplomatic relations as the first Western nation to establish relations with Mongolia. We are set to agree a Joint Cooperation Roadmap with Mongolia this year, which will encompass the key aspects of the bilateral relationship. Ministerial travel is announced in the usual way.

Sudan: Democracy and Human Rights

Jessica Morden: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of international coordination on supporting (a) peace, (b) human rights and (c) democracy in Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is working with a wide range of partners, including Gulf and African countries, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the UN, to take forward a sustained and meaningful peace process that leads to the resumption of civilian rule in Sudan. We continue to support mediation efforts and urge both warring parties to engage constructively to secure a ceasefire and ensure humanitarian access.

Department for Education

Disabled Students' Allowances: Overseas Students

Zarah Sultana: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential (a) merits of extending eligibility for Disabled Students’ Allowance to international students and (b) impact of the existing eligibility criteria on educational inequalities in higher education.

Luke Hall: The government appreciates the significant economic and cultural contribution that international students make to UK higher education (HE). The department’s offer to international students remains very competitive and the department is committed to ensuring the UK remains a destination of choice for the brightest and best international students from across the globe. To be eligible for Disabled Students Allowance, students must: (a) meet the personal eligibility criteria for student finance within the Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011 and be studying a course designated for student support; and (b) have a disability as defined in the Equality Act 2010.Entitlement to student support and home fee status is limited to eligible students who are undertaking HE courses offered by UK institutions that are designated for support. This is to ensure that the HE student finance system remains financially sustainable. The government has no plans to extend home fee status and student support to international students. All HE providers must fulfil their responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 in their support for all disabled HE students regardless of whether they are home or international students.

Higher Education: Overseas Students

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made in implementing the objectives of the International Education Strategy to increase the (a) value of education exports and (b) number of international higher education students studying in the UK.

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to (a) promote and (b) protect education exports.

Luke Hall: The International Education Strategy (IES) is a UK wide strategy which commits to growing the value of education exports. An update to the department’s IES was published on 26 May 2023. This is the third annual progress update to the original 2019 IES. A link to the 2023 update can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-education-strategy-2023-update. The UK has met the IES international student ambition of 600 thousand per year by 2030 for two years running in both 2020/21 and 2021/22. The department is on track and will continue working towards the IES education export ambition of £35 billion per year by 2030 with £27.9 billion revenue in 2021. Data used to track progress against these two ambitions is published annually.As the International Education Champion, Professor Sir Steve Smith continues to promote UK education export growth and supports ministers to engage in strategic discussions on progress on implementing the strategy with the education sector.

Department for Education: Marketing

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of her Department’s (a) advertising and (b) marketing expenditure was on (i) local newspapers in print and online, (ii) national newspapers in print and online, (iii) social media, (iv) search engines, (v) broadcast and on-demand television and (vi) other channels in the most recent year for which data is available.

Damian Hinds: In 2022/23, the department continued to deliver communications activity in support of ministerial priorities and the wider government communications plan across its remit of skills, schools and families. This included campaigns to support the government’s ambitious skills reform programme, maximising take up of childcare entitlements, inspiring more people to teach in schools and a new campaign to attract professionals to share their skills by becoming teachers in further education.Most communications continue to be delivered in–house at no additional cost, as part of cross-government campaigns or at low cost by supporting and co–ordinating partners’ activity. Government marketing plays a crucial role in achieving operational and policy objectives, as well as driving behaviour change. Where paid-for communications are used, these are subject to the Cabinet Office’s advertising, marketing and communications spending controls. These controls ensure that, where taxpayer money is being spent on government communications, it is cost-effective, co-ordinated and reflects functional standards and professional best practices. Paid-for communications also comply with government and departmental procurement or governance policies and processes.The latest period for which final and consolidated total spend across all Department for Education campaigns is available for the 2022/23 financial year. Spend across the channels requested is outlined below:Media type22/23TV and Broadcast Video on Demand£7,769,044Search Engine £3,215,500Social £4,842,978Print (local and national)£222,623Other channels£10,664,887Total £26,715,032

Special Educational Needs: Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2024 to Question 13342 on Special Educational Needs, if she will allocate additional funding to Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council to help increase its capacity to conduct education health and care plan assessments.

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2024 to Question 13342 on Special Educational Needs, what steps her Department is taking to help Stockport Council (a) increase its capacity to undertake and (b) improve the quality of its education, health and care plan assessments.

David Johnston: The cost of local authorities’ Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment and planning function is paid from authorities’ general fund from, for example, council tax, business rates or the Revenue Support Grant provided by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC). Any increase in capacity for the EHC needs assessment team must be met from the local authority’s general fund.Stockport special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) Local Area Partnership’s Accelerated Progress Plan (APP), which has been in place since the Ofsted and Care Quality Commission (CQC) joint area SEND revisit in September 2022, includes actions to address the quality of EHC plans in the area. Department for Education officials and NHS (England) SEND advisers have been providing support, challenge and advice in monitoring the progress of the APP.Stockport is also one of the 55 local areas which have been invited to join the government’s £85 million Delivering Better Value Programme to support local areas to achieve maximum value for money in delivering SEND provision, whilst maintaining and improving the outcomes they achieve. One of the workstreams being funded by this grant is ‘Governance and Accountability of SEN Support and EHC Needs Assessments’ through which the department is assisting Stockport to improve their EHC plan processes and the quality of plans.The department wants to ensure that EHC needs assessments, where required, are conducted as quickly as possible, so that children and young people can access the support they need. In March 2023, the government set out its plans to reform and improve the SEND system through its SEND and alternative provision (AP) Improvement Plan. The plan commits to establishing a single national system that delivers for every child and young person with SEND so that they enjoy their childhood, achieve good outcomes and are well prepared for adulthood and employment.In the short term, the department is working hard to improve the current EHC plan system through a range of measures to improve the SEND system. The department is investing heavily in the SEND system. Examples of the department’s investments include: improving specialist capacity by investing over £21 million to train 400 more educational psychologists from 2024, investing £2.6 billion between 2022 and 2025 to fund new special and AP places and improve existing provision (including announcing 41 new special free schools and 38 special free schools that are currently in the pipeline), investing £30 million to develop innovative approaches for short breaks for children, young people and their families over three years and investing over £7 million to fund extension of the Alternative Provision Specialist Taskforce pilot programme, (delivering now in 22 local authorities) to run until 2025.The department is also putting in place measures to improve the SEND system in the longer term, so that where an EHC plan is needed they can be issued as quickly as possible, so that children and young people can access the support they need.

Childminding

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number of childminders on the (a) Early Years Register and (b) Childcare Register in (i) each region and (ii) each local authority in each year since 2018.

David Johnston: This is a matter for His Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Martyn Oliver. I have asked him to write to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Housing: Floods

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will introduce a scheme which allows local authorities to purchase properties which frequently flood from their owners.

Simon Hoare: The department has made no such assessment.

Social Rented Housing: Nottingham East

Nadia Whittome: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of homes for social rent in Nottingham East constituency.

Jacob Young: Data on social housing supply is not held at constituency level.

Regional Planning and Development: Belfast South

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much and what proportion of levelling up funding allocated to Northern Ireland has been for projects in Belfast South constituency.

Jacob Young: Levelling Up funding is not allocated by constituency. In total, Northern Ireland has received £435 million of levelling up funding since 2019. I was delighted to visit the Innovation Factory in Belfast recently and see how the UK Shared Prosperity Fund is benefiting Northern Ireland through projects like Go Succeed.South Belfast constituency benefits from a share of around £104 million of UKSPF funding for Northern Ireland. This includes, for example, £240,367 for installation of a new path and community garden in the Botanic Gardens.

Rented Housing: Deposits

Andrew Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made recent progress on introducing a lifetime deposit for renters.

Jacob Young: As set out in our 2022 White Paper ‘A Fairer Private Rented Sector’, the market has responded to the ambition of our manifesto commitment for a ‘lifetime deposit’.We continue to monitor the development of commercial lifetime deposit solutions, alongside keeping deposit protection and the broader deposit market under review.

Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when he plans to lay commencement regulations to bring section 115 of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 into force.

Lee Rowley: Regulations (2024/452) have been laid on 4 April 2024 to commence section 115 of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, and this will come into force on 25 April 2024.

Housing: Insulation

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has made an estimate of the number of timber-frame homes in England that have similar UPVC cladding installed as the properties involved in the Moss Hall Grove fire in Barnet in June 2023.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has received advice from relevant stakeholders on the potential risk of timber-frame constructions with UPVC cladding since the fire in Moss Hall Grove in Barnet in June 2023.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to help support Barnet Council to remediate properties with timber-frames and UPVC cladding in line with (a) PAS 9980 and (b) other applicable standards.

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to provide cladding remediation funding for (a) leaseholders, (b) shared ownership leaseholders and (c) freeholders who purchased their home under the Right to Buy scheme in timber-frame properties with UPVC cladding.

Lee Rowley: We are aware of the action being taken by Barnet Council and continue to engage closely with them on the steps they are taking following the Moss Hall Grove fire in June 2023. Department officials met with Barnet Council representatives on 10 April and will continue to discuss with them.

Social Rented Housing: Mould

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to monitor the interventions made by social housing providers to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance he provides to local authorities on the provision of suitable accommodation when private landlords fail to tackle damp and mould in residential properties.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to help ensure people who have to leave a property due to mould and damp are rehoused.

Jacob Young: The Secretary of State wrote to all providers of social housing setting out his expectations that they tackle dangerous damp and mould in their properties. We have now introduced ‘Awaab’s Law’, which will set new requirements for social landlords to address hazards such as damp and mould.We have given local authorities strong enforcement powers that they must use if they identify dangerous damp and mould in privately rented homes and, through the Renters (Reform) Bill, are legislating to apply the Decent Homes Standard to the private rented sector for the first time. Guidance for local authorities on how to ensure accommodation for homeless applicants is suitable can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homelessness-code-of-guidance-for-local-authorities/chapter-17-suitability-of-accommodation.

Witham Industrial Watch: Business Improvement Districts

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when his Department plans to respond to the correspondence of 29 January 2024 from Witham Industrial Watch Ltd providing notice under regulation 3(2) of the Business Improvement Districts (England) Regulations 2004 that they are proposing to initiate a Business Improvement District renewal ballot.

Simon Hoare: The department responded to Witham Industrial Watch Ltd to confirm receipt of their letter dated 29 January 2024.

Restoration and Renewal Client Board

Question

Theresa Villiers: To ask the hon. Member for Broxbourne, representing the Restoration and Renewal Client Board, what the Client Board's planned timetable is for proposals on restoration and renewal to be considered by hon. Members.

Sir Charles Walker: The R&R Client Board last month published the strategic case for the R&R Programme. This set out that three options for how to deliver the R&R works to the Palace will be developed in detail over the next year. This detailed work, which will include robust cost, timescale and risk estimates for all three options, is expected to be presented to the Houses in 2025 to enable an evidence-based decision on how best to restore the Palace.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Marketing

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of his Department’s (a) advertising and (b) marketing expenditure was on (i) local newspapers in print and online, (ii) national newspapers in print and online, (iii) social media, (iv) search engines, (v) broadcast and on-demand television and (vi) other channels in the most recent year for which data is available.

Alex Burghart: The requested information is not centrally held, and complying with this request would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.

Blood: Contamination

Drew Hendry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to page 22 of the Infected Blood Inquiry’s second Interim Report of the Infected Blood Inquiry, published on 5 April 2023, what steps his Department plans to take to help ensure (a) the independence of and (b) confidence in the arms length body.

John Glen: The victims of the scandal are at the forefront of my mind, and it is critical to ensure that any scheme works effectively for the victims. The Government will respond in full to Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations following the publication of the Inquiry’s final report. Additionally, we are tabling a Government amendment at Report Stage of the Victims and Prisoners Bill in the Other Place to fix technical deficiencies, while working in the spirit of Dame Diana Johnson’s amendment. The amendment is tabled with the intention of speeding up the implementation of the Government’s response to the Infected Blood Inquiry.

Department for Business and Trade

Brexit

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Goldman Sachs report entitled the Structural and Cyclical Costs of Brexit, published on 9 February 2024.

Greg Hands: The Government keeps track of external analysis from third parties often based on a range of assumptions and hypothetical views. Since leaving the EU, the Department for Business and Trade has secured free trade deals with 73 countries in addition to the EU, partners which accounted for £1.1 trillion UK trade in 2022, and simplified import tariffs to lower costs for businesses and households. The UK’s total trade with the world (including goods and services) increased by £43bn (inflation adjusted) in 2023 compared to 2018. Since the referendum, the UK has grown faster than Germany, Italy, and Japan and the IMF forecasted that the UK will see the 3rd fastest cumulative growth in the G7 over 2024-2029, ahead of Germany, Italy, France, and Japan.

Skilled Workers: Vacancies

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential reasons for skills shortages.

Kevin Hollinrake: The workforce is more highly qualified than 15 years ago, but adult participation in further education has declined significantly. This has left us with a gap in higher technical skills: only 4% of young people achieve a qualification at higher technical level by 25 compared to 33% who get a degree or above. We know through our work with investors and businesses that we do not have enough technicians, engineers or health and social care professionals to meet our challenges. Therefore, the Government are investing an additional £3.8 billion into skills and further education over this Parliament to help workers develop the skills businesses need.

Small Businesses: Postal Services

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made representations to Royal Mail on the impact of price rises on SMEs.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Government does not have a role in Royal Mail’s commercial decisions, including the prices of stamps and other services. In setting its prices, Royal Mail must observe the regulatory framework set by Ofcom which imposes prices controls, ‘safeguard caps’, on certain second-class products to ensure a basic universal service is available to all at affordable prices. On 24 January 2024, following a public consultation, Ofcom announced its decisions regarding retail price caps on Royal Mail’s universal postal services to apply from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2027.

Automotive Transformation Fund

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will extend the Automotive Transformation Fund (a) into and (b) beyond the 2025-26 financial year; and whether any contracts with suppliers to deliver the Automotive Transformation Fund extend (i) into and (ii) beyond the 2025-26 financial year.

Alan Mak: As part of the Advanced Manufacturing Plan, we have announced over £2bn of capital and R&D funding over five years to 2030, boosting the UK’s competitiveness and unlocking strategic investments in our automotive industry. This funding will be delivered via Auto2030, an ambitious programme building on the work of the Automotive Transformation Fund and the Advanced Propulsion Centre R&D programmes, ensuring continuity in HMG support. This programme will leverage the UK’s unique innovation ecosystem, building on its strengths as a global centre of automotive R&D. Details of funding opportunities under Auto2030, including delivery mechanisms, will be set out in due course.

INEOS: Belgium

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what estimate UK Export Finance made of the potential value of (a) goods and (b) services from UK (i) businesses contracted directly by and (ii) supply chain businesses that will be used in INEOS Project One, Belgium as a result of the support it has committed to that project.

Greg Hands: UK Export Finance’s (UKEF’s) support for export transactions is conditional on the inclusion of UK goods and services, with a general requirement that there should be at least 20% UK content relative to the value of its support. In this instance, UKEF support has already secured over €200 million of UK content into this project.

Carers: Leave

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps her Department has taken to raise awareness of carer's leave amongst employers.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Department for Business and Trade has carried out a range of activities to raise awareness of Carer’s Leave with employers. This includes producing associated guidance, which is available through GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/carers-leave), and working closely with a range of stakeholders, including Carers UK and the Business Representative Organisations, to communicate the changes directly to employers, for example through newsletters and webinars. The Department is also promoting Carers Leave through the ‘Help to Grow’ website (https://helptogrow.campaign.gov.uk/new-changes-to-employment-law/). Acas has also produced guidance (https://www.acas.org.uk/carers-leave).

Baby Care Units: Parental Leave

James Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 December 2023 to Question 5143 on Baby Care Units: Parental Leave, what her planned timetable is for bringing forward the remaining statutory instruments under the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023.

Kevin Hollinrake: We are committed to introducing Neonatal Care Leave and Pay as quickly as possible and work is ongoing across Government to deliver these new entitlements by April 2025, subject to parliamentary scheduling.

Ministry of Defence

Armed Forces: Reviews

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) priorities and (b) objectives are of the Future Force Design Review; who is leading the Review; when he plans it will be completed; and whether he plans to publish the recommendations of the Review.

James Cartlidge: The Future Force Design Review is being led by the Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (Military Capability). It will consider how the UK will warfight in the future, what this means for how we structure our armed forces and the capabilities we need, all within a NATO context. It is a pan-Defence review drawing from existing evidence, concepts and operational lessons, including insights from Ukraine, with the objective of presenting choices to inform the next integrated review. Given the classification of the work, the department does not intend to publish the recommendations of the review but instead the output will be included in future strategic review documents and our investment plans. We have committed to engage with the House of Commons Defence Committee as this work matures.

Armed Forces: Housing

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2024 to Question 20104 on Armed Forces: Housing, how many routine pest control requests were responded to within fifteen days.

James Cartlidge: This information is not held in the format requested and can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Armed Forces: Housing

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2024 to Question 20104 on Armed Forces: Housing, how many emergency pest control requests were responded to within three hours.

James Cartlidge: In relation to the incidents data in the table referred to, there were no emergency incidents relating to pest control activities requiring a response within three hours.

Ajax Vehicles: Testing

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18055 on Ajax Vehicles: Testing, how many claims for compensation on noise induced hearing loss were related to the AJAX project in each year since 2019.

James Cartlidge: The information for financial year (FY) 2018-19 – FY2022-23 has been provided in Question 18055 on 20 March 2024. In addition, I can now confirm figures for FY2023-24. FY2023-24 – Two.

Armed Forces: Private Rented Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Service Family Accommodation properties were rented out to non-service personnel by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation in each year since 2010.

James Cartlidge: The number of Service Family Accommodation (SFA) properties rented out to non-service personnel by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation as of the 1 April in each year since 2016 is shown in the table below:  YearApril 2016April 2017April 2018April 2019April 2020April 2021April 2022April 2023April 2024Total of SFA Sublets157282660127217241998193119302402  No information is held prior to Financial Year 2016/17 as the Department only began to sub-let surplus SFA in 2016.

Ministry of Defence: Vacancies

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many senior responsible owner roles are vacant in his Department as of 15 April 2024.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2024 to Question 16605 on Ministry of Defence: Senior Civil Servants, how many senior responsible owner positions are filled with temporary cover.

James Cartlidge: The Senior Responsible Owner resourcing position is monitored at local levels with formal reporting at the end of each quarter. At 31 March 2024, all of our 50 Government Major Projects Portfolio programmes had a Senior Responsible Owner in place who was accountable for decisions and making progress against the delivery plan. In three cases these positions were filled temporarily while recruitment action takes place.

Armed Forces: Housing

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2024 to Question 19180 on Armed Forces: Housing, when the (a) Minister for the Armed Forces and (b) Minister for Defence People and Families last had discussions with representatives of (i) VIVO, (ii) Amey and (iii) Pinnacle on the maintenance of service accommodation properties.

James Cartlidge: There is no formal record of any meeting between the Minister for Armed Forces and representatives from VIVO, Amey and Pinnacle on the maintenance of Service accommodation. There is a formal record of an invitation for a meeting in January 2023 between the Minister for Defence People and Families and VIVO, Amey and Pinnacle on the maintenance of Service accommodation. I have engaged with VIVO, Amey and Pinnacle representatives in summer 2023 regarding overdue Landlord Gas Safety Inspections and Electrical Insulation Condition Reports. In addition to this, Defence Infrastructure Organisation officials are in daily contact with VIVO, Amey and Pinnacle regarding delivery and performance.

Iran: Israel

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Israel sought military assistance from the UK for the action taken against Iranian drones and missiles on 13 April 2024.

Leo Docherty: For operational security reasons and as a matter of policy, the Ministry of Defence does not offer comment or information relating to foreign nations' military operations.

Ministry of Defence: Aviation

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20231 on Ministry of Defence: Aviation and with reference to page 13 of the Cabinet Office Guidance on Ministers’ gifts (given and received), travel, hospitality received and meetings with external organisations and individuals, updated on 2 April 2024, for what reason the answer does not provide the total cost of each RAF flight.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Transparency data is provided in line with longstanding Government guidance, this includes the provision of costs for RAF flights for Ministerial travel.

Ministry of Defence: Pay

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his letter, reference PQN/23-24/2024/04115, if he will provide a breakdown by position of the 149 individuals in his Department who earn more than £100,000 a year.

Dr Andrew Murrison: It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the right hon. Member's Question. I will write to her when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the Library of The House.

Ministry of Defence: Fraud

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the letter sent to the Rt hon. Member for Garston and Halewood on 27 February, reference 3427, if he will provide a breakdown of the type of fraud for each year since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Reports of fraud are recorded on the Defence Confidential Hotline’s Case Management System against pre-determined categories. The table sets out the categories for the total detected fraud values in my letter of 27 February. Fraud Category2010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-192019-202020-212021-222022-232023-24Civilian AllowancesXXXXXXXXCivilian ExpensesXXXXXXXXXXXXXCivilian PayXXXXService AllowancesXXXXXXXXXXXXService ExpensesXXXXXXXXXXXXXXService PayXXXCyber and communicationXXXXDepartmental Income RelatedXXXExploiting Assets and InformationXXXXXXXXXJoint Personnel Administration, Travel & Subsistence and Other AllowancesXXXXXXXXXPay RelatedXXXXXXXXXXXXXXPayment ProcessesXXXXXXXXXPension FraudXXXXXXXXXXXXPersonnel Management RelatedXXXXXXXXXXXXXProcurementXXXXXXXXXXXRecruitingXXXXTheft of AssetsXXXXXXXXXXXXXXOtherXXXXXXXXXXX

Armed Forces: Recruitment

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many applications to join the (a) Army, (b) Maritime and (c) RAF Reserves were voluntarily withdrawn after (i) three, (ii) six and (iii) 12 months in each year since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: It is taking time to collate the required information to answer the right hon. Member’s Question. I will write to him when the information is available, and a copy of this letter will be placed in the Library of The House.

Armed Forces: Recruitment

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Armed Forces Careers Offices operated in each year since 2010.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Armed Forces Careers Offices operated in each region in each year since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 5 April 2024, to Question 7763 and 7764.Armed Forces Career Offices (pdf, 99.3KB)

LGBT Veterans Independent Review

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral statement of the Minister for Defence People and Families of 13 December 2023 on LGBT Veterans Independent Review, Official Report, column 898, what his planned timetable is for a full debate on the recommendations of the Etherton report.

Dr Andrew Murrison: This Government commissioned the LGBT Veterans Independent Review under Lord Etherton in 2022 which covers the period 1967-2000. Its findings were published on 19 July 2023. Since then, the Government has been actioning Lord Etherton’s recommendationsat pace. I made an oral statement on 13 December 2023 when the Government’s full response was published and took questions from 20 colleagues. A debate will be scheduled as soon as possible.

Iran: Israel

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the UK's participation in the military operation in defence of Israel on 13 April 2024 was carried out under the terms of the agreement signed between the British Armed Forces and the Israeli Defence Force on 2 December 2020.

Leo Docherty: No.

Ukraine: Minesweepers

Alistair Strathern: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department's press release of 11 December 2023 entitled British minehunting ships to bolster Ukrainian Navy as UK and Norway launch maritime support initiative, whether the two Sandown Class minehunters procured by Ukraine through UK Export Finance have arrived in Ukraine.

Leo Docherty: It would not be appropriate to discuss specifics of the vessels transiting to Ukrainian waters. The Ukrainian crew of the vessels are currently undergoing training around UK waters, which has included participation in a multinational Mine Counter Measures exercise. The Royal Navy will continue to support these efforts and remains ready to assist with the transit of the vessels to Ukrainian waters, when appropriate.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Defence Procurement in response to the question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent on 25 March 2024, Official Report, column 1253, whether the RAF have met their quota for successfully trained pilots in (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and (c) 2022-23.

Leo Docherty: Yes.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Defence Procurement in response to the question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent on 25 March 2024, Official Report, column 1253, whether he expects the RAF to meet their quota for successfully trained pilots this year.

Leo Docherty: Yes.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary: Civil Service

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) men and (b) women have transferred from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary to the Civil Service in each year since 2010.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Seafarers are employees of the Civil Service. Persons wishing to apply for and accept alternative employment are not obliged to inform the RFA of its details and therefore no accurate records are available.

Department for Transport

Electric Vehicles: Grants

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for plug-in vehicle grants to private cars.

Anthony Browne: There are now over a million battery electric cars registered in the UK, and their sales continue to grow. The Government is targeting its incentives where they have the most impact and deliver the greatest value for money. Plug-in Grants will continue until at least financial year 2024/25 for motorcycles, vans, taxis, trucks and wheelchair accessible vehicles.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Sir Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support the installation of electric vehicle charging points for residential apartments.

Sir Alec Shelbrooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential (a) costs and (b) merits of requiring freeholders to allow the installation of electric vehicle charging points where requested by leaseholders.

Anthony Browne: The Government is continuing provide support to install chargepoints. This includes the Electric Vehicle Charge Point grant which provides people living in flats or rental accommodating up to £350 towards an EV chargepoint, and Infrastructure Grants which allow those who own apartment blocks to apply for funding for installation in car parks. The Government also delivered world-leading legislation which came into force in June 2022, requiring new buildings with associated parking to have charging infrastructure installed. These measures are estimated to lead to the installation of up to 145,000 chargepoints across England every year, including for new apartments.

Buses: Carbon Emissions

Simon Lightwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many zero-emission buses have been allocated funding under the Zero Emission Bus Regional Areas scheme 1 as of 15 April 2024; and how many and what proportion of those buses (a) have been ordered and (b) are on the road as of that date.

Guy Opperman: The Government provided £270 million to Local Transport Authorities under the ZEBRA 1 programme. This funded 1,314 buses,1,053 have been ordered of which 313 are already on our roads across England. More recently, the Government announced ZEBRA 2, with a further £142.8 million to Local Transport Authorities. This will help LTAs to purchase more zero emission buses, going further in our commitment to reduce carbon emissions in the transport sector whilst improving service quality for users.

Electric Scooters: Hire Services

Andrew Lewer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to ensure that the deadline for the end of e-scooter trials is not extended any further.

Anthony Browne: The Government plans to legislate to regulate micromobility when parliamentary time allows. The trials continue to provide helpful information to inform that process.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, in which financial year funding allocated through (a) the rapid charging fund, (b) the local electric vehicle infrastructure capability fund and (c) other electric vehicle charging funds will expire.

Anthony Browne: The Rapid Charging Fund is a complex, long-term project. In December 2023, a £70m pilot for the Rapid Charging Fund opened for applications, which are now being assessed. The £381 million Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund, including capital and capability funding is available over the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 financial years. This follows the LEVI Pilot and initial LEVI capability funding for local authorities in 2022/2023.  The Electric Vehicle Chargepoint Grant, Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grant, and Workplace Charging Scheme are also currently available. These grants are kept under continual review.

Great British Railways: Derby

Mrs Pauline Latham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on establishing the Great British Railways headquarters in Derby.

Huw Merriman: Great British Railways Transition Team (GBRTT) are currently working with a specialist property agent to identify a suitable location to house GBR’s HQ. GBRTT have collaborated closely with Derby-based partners including the City Council to create a shared vision for the HQ which includes creating value for customers and supporting local communities in and around the city. On 15 April, GBRTT opened its second office in Derby to host innovation, collaboration, and engagement sessions with partners in the rail industry. The office will serve to establish a footprint in Derby before the launch of GBR.

Train Operating Companies

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what open access applications (a) are awaiting a decision from the Office of Rail and Road and (b) were approved in the last 12 months.

Huw Merriman: There are currently 3 separate applications to run new open access services under consideration by the Office of Rail and Road: from Hull Trains to operate between Sheffield and London; Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway to operate between Wrexham and London; and Go-Op to operate between Taunton and Swindon/Weston-super-Mare. In the last 12 months, the ORR has approved Grand Union Trains’ application to run new open access services between London and Stirling, and also Grand Central’s application to make additional stops at Peterborough.

Railways

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to release details of unused track access rights on the rail network so that new open access applications can be made.

Huw Merriman: Network Rail have recently updated their process to begin publishing details of all future access rights released under Part J of the Network Code on their website. The Office for Rail and Road also publish on their website details of consolidated contract and track access decisions which allow potential market entrants to identify new opportunities.

Railways

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of GB intercity rail passenger services are delivered by open access operators.

Huw Merriman: Network Rail have confirmed that within the current timetable, published in December 2023, 7.16% of intercity passenger services across Great Britain are delivered by Open Access operators.

Alstom and Hitachi: Redundancy

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations they have received from (a) Hitachi and (b) Alstom on their redundancy consultations.

Huw Merriman: My Department has been in intensive discussion with Alstom since the company announced a consultation on potential redundancies at its train manufacturing site in Derby in November 2023. Hitachi is not currently consulting on redundancies at its train manufacturing site in Newton Aycliffe, but my Department has met Hitachi Rail’s UK management team several times in recent months to discuss workload at the company’s Newton Aycliffe site.

Rolling Stock: Manufacturing Industries

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Hitachi on the job security of the staff at its rail plant in Newton Aycliffe.

Huw Merriman: Hitachi is not currently consulting on any workforce changes at its train manufacturing site in Newton Aycliffe. Ministers and officials in my Department have met Hitachi Rail’s UK management team several times in recent months and have had several exchanges of correspondence to discuss workload and job security at the company’s Newton Aycliffe site.

London North Eastern Railway: Finance

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support from the public purse the London and North Eastern Railway has received to maintain (a) existing railway operations and (b) timetable commitments in 2023-24.

Huw Merriman: As reported in their annual statement of accounts, London North Eastern Railway received £96 million in subsidy from the Department for Transport for the year 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.

East Coast Main Line: Train Operating Companies

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the new rail capacity created by the East Coast Main Line upgrade works will be allocated to open access rail services.

Huw Merriman: The Department for Transport does not specify the allocation of increased capacity. However, open access operators may apply to utilise available capacity alongside operators contracted by Government. It will then be a matter for Network Rail and the Office of Rail and Road to decide through the established systems and processes how capacity should ultimately be allocated.

East Coast Main Line

John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of East Coast Main Line intercity passenger services are delivered by open access operators.

Huw Merriman: Network Rail have confirmed that within the current timetable, published in December 2023, 8.92% of East Coast Main Line intercity passenger services are delivered by Open Access operators.

Railways: Manufacturing Industries

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representation he has received on the future of UK rail manufacturing capability.

Huw Merriman: My Department has engaged extensively with the four train manufacturers with facilities in the UK, train operators and rolling stock owners to ensure a sustainable future for UK rail manufacturing. Rail manufacturing plays an important role in growing the UK economy and there is now a strong pipeline of future orders. In January 2024, I wrote to train manufacturers with details of planned and expected procurements, which include upcoming competitions being run by Northern, Southeastern, TransPennine and Chiltern. These contracts are worth an estimated £3.6 billion alongside significant maintenance and refurbishment opportunities.

Mill Hill Broadway Station: Access

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Statement of 4 April 2019 on Access for All, HCWS1484, for what reason work to provide step-free access at Mill Hill Broadway has not yet started.

Huw Merriman: There are many technical issues to overcome at this station, given it is located on the Midland Main Line and adjacent to the M1 motorway, all of which are currently under consideration.

Mill Hill Broadway Station: Access

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Statement of 4 April 2019 on Access for All, HCWS1484, what recent estimate he has made of when work to provide step-free access at Mill Hill Broadway will be started.

Huw Merriman: The Access for All project at Mill Hill Broadway station is at the outline design stage. Network Rail are in the process of reviewing and challenging the cost estimate provided by the contractor.

Civil Aviation Authority: Pay

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Civil Aviation Authority staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Anthony Browne: The pay ranges of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) can be found in the attached table. The CAA has a single set of pay ranges for staff within and outside London. Additional pay ranges apply for specific roles (such as doctors) where the CAA require a salary which is higher than the core pay range and there is a separate process for senior executive salaries. Table of pay ranges of each grade - CAA (xlsx, 18.6KB)

Roads: Litter

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether offenders under the Ministry of Justice’s community payback project scheme have been used to remove litter from (a) A roads, (b) B roads and (c) motorways.

Guy Opperman: National Highways worked with the National Probation Service, an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice, on the Community Payback Project and provided opportunities for litter picking at motorway service areas. Trial sites included Gloucester, Hartshead Moor, Chester and Leicester Forest East.For health and safety reasons, National Highways is unable to facilitate offenders removing litter from Motorways or All-Purpose Trunk Roads.B roads are a matter for each individual local authority and so this data is not held by the Department for Transport.

Roads: Litter

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will introduce key performance indicators for Highways England in the elimination of rubbish on the strategic roads network.

Guy Opperman: National Highways are monitored against a performance indicator in the performance specification for the current Road Investment Strategy 2 (RIS2). This measures the percentage of the Strategic Road Network where litter cleansing is managed by National Highways which is either free of litter, refuse and detritus, or predominately free apart from some small items, in line with the Code of Practice on Litter and Refuse, published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. As part of developing the third Road Investment Strategy (RIS3), the Department for Transport is continuing to explore potential metrics for inclusion in the RIS3 performance specification, as was well as considering improvements to existing metrics, such as litter.

Rolling Stock: Manufacturing Industries

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with Hitachi on its rail plant in Newton Aycliffe.

Huw Merriman: My Department has met Hitachi Rail’s UK management team several times in recent months to discuss workload at the company’s Newton Aycliffe site. We remain keen to discuss options with Hitachi for ensuring a sustainable future for their site.

High Speed 2 Line

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2024 to Question 18584 on High Speed 2 Line, when he plans to publish the phase one updated business case.

Huw Merriman: Work is continuing on an updated Business Case for the HS2 programme. This update will be completed as soon as possible.

High Speed 2 Line

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2024 to Question 18584 on High Speed 2 Line, what train services were included in the business case.

Huw Merriman: The indicative train service specification will be published as part of the updated Business Case for the HS2 programme.

Elizabeth Line and Southeastern: Repairs and Maintenance

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2023 to Question 5623 on Elizabeth Line and Southeastern: Repairs and Maintenance, what progress the cross Whitehall task force has made on (a) mitigations against redundancies and (b) bringing forward (i) existing refurbishment and (ii) new contracts for (A) Southeastern Rail and (B) Elizabeth Line trains.

Huw Merriman: Ministers and officials have held intensive discussions over several months with rolling stock manufacturers to explore options to help them find viable and sustainable long-term solutions around their rolling stock capabilities. In January of this year, I published a pipeline of opportunities which I would expect all manufacturers to bid for; however, there is no guarantee on who will win these. In March 2024, Alstom was successfully awarded a contract for the refurbishment of the CrossCountry Voyager fleet that will support UK suppliers and skilled jobs across the country. Officials in collaboration with the operator continue to work at pace on publishing the Invitation to Negotiate for the Southeastern procurement. The Secretary of State has met with Alstom to discuss a potential way forward regarding the Elizabeth Line fleet and a statement will be made at the appropriate time.

Schools: Pedestrian Crossings

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department holds information on the number and proportion of school crossing guards who wear body cameras while on duty.

Guy Opperman: This information is not held by the Department.

Schools: Pedestrian Crossings

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many school crossing guards have been involved in road traffic accidents while on duty in each of the last five years.

Guy Opperman: This information is not held by the Department.

Department for Work and Pensions

State Retirement Pensions: Women

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will provide compensation to women who have been affected by changes to the State Pension age.

Paul Maynard: In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.

State Retirement Pensions: Women

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has had discussions with the Leader of the House on making Parliamentary time available for Members to debate and approve the recommendations in the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into the communication of state pension age increases, published on 21 March 2024.

Paul Maynard: In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.

Department for Work and Pensions: Staff

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many full-time equivalent staff worked in his Department’s Counter Fraud, Compliance and Debt unit in each of the last ten years for which figures are available.

Paul Maynard: Please see the Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) numbers for Counter Fraud Compliance & Debt (CFCD) and its predecessor Counter Fraud & Compliance (CFC). To ensure compliance with GDPR, seven years of data is the maximum that we hold. Paid Staff at specified date, Full Time EquivalentDateFTECFC/CFCD31-Mar 20185209.8CFC31-Mar 20195488.3CFC31-Mar 20207519.4CFCD31-Mar 20216941.6CFCD31-Mar 20228289.7CFCD31-Mar 20239080.2CFCD

State Retirement Pensions: Women

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an estimate of how many women affected by State Pension age changes have died since the publication of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into the communication of state pension age increases on 21 March 2024.

Paul Maynard: In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.

State Retirement Pensions: Women

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department accepts the findings of maladministration in the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into the communication of state pension age increases, published on 21 March 2024.

Paul Maynard: In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.

State Retirement Pensions: Women

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to meet with representatives of the Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign following the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into the communication of state pension age increases, published on 21 March 2024.

Paul Maynard: In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.

Independent Case Examiner

Simon Lightwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to assign to an investigator a complaint to the Independent Case Examiner.

Paul Maynard: The rate at which complaints can be allocated to an investigator is dependent on multiple factors including the volume and complexity of complaints received, as well as available investigative resource. ICE is a demand led service and continues to receive high complaint intake volumes. It has experienced a 37% increase in referrals since April 2022, with an 18% increase in the 2023/24 operational year. Not all referrals into ICE are accepted for investigation. ICE has experienced an 83% increase in the volume of cases it has accepted since April 2020, with a 9% increase in the 2023/24 operational year. The ICE office continues to review its process and operating model and continuously seeks opportunities to maximise productivity, ensuring it operates with optimum investigative resource. In the past 20 months (August 2022 – March 2024) resource levels at the ICE office have increased by 18%. The unit is operating at 99.11% of its agreed headcount. The Office has reduced the volume of cases awaiting allocation to an investigator by 49% over the 2023/24 operational year. The combined number of cases being handled by the ICE Office at the end of March 2024 was 1462, this represents a 33% reduction from March 2023 despite the high intake levels experienced.

Universal Credit: Training

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the number of weeks for which a person can undertake training and remain eligible for universal credit.

Jo Churchill: Work Coaches recommend options to customers to address skills barriers and provide support for them to access a wide range of provision. Which can include essential Maths, English and Digital Skills, and other vocational opportunities such as Sector-based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs).Whilst periods of training are generally expected to be directly linked to customer’s work search goals, we have increased the amount of time Universal Credit customers in the All Work Related Requirements conditionality group can take part in full time, work-related training for up to 16 weeks in Great Britain.Where a longer period of training is required to equip someone with the skills for work whilst also maintaining employment, other options are available including apprenticeships. Apprenticeships are designed by employers and open to learners of all ages, with vocational courses ranging from level 2 up to post-graduate qualifications.

Cold Weather Payments: Lincolnshire

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how manyCold Weather Paymentshave been made to pensioners in (a) South Holland and (b) Kesteven district in the last five years.

Paul Maynard: The Cold Weather Payment (CWP) scheme is administered at weather station level rather than at a constituency or regional level etc. The coverage area for each weather station is determined by the Met Office, which assesses the most appropriate weather station for each postcode area. Cold weather payments are triggered when the average temperature recorded at the weather station has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0° C or below over seven consecutive days, during the Cold Weather season (November to March). a) The area of South Holland covers all or part of the following postcode areas: PE11, PE12, PE10, PE6, PE13, PE14, PE34. From the 2019/20 to 2023/24 Cold Weather Payment seasons, the above postcode areas are covered by various weather stations. These weather stations cover the following postcode areas, in Table 1, which include areas not in South Holland. Table 2 shows the number of cold weather payments to pensioners by weather station and cold weather season. Table 1: Postcode districts mapped to Weather StationsWeather stationPostcode Districts CoveredMarhamCB6-7, IP24-28, PE12-14, PE30-38.WaddingtonDN9-10, DN15-22, DN31-41, LN1-13, NG23-24, PE10-11, PE20-25.WitteringLE15, NN14-18, PE1-9, PE15-16, PE26-29 Table 2: Number of Cold Weather Payments to pensioners by weather station and Cold Weather SeasonWeather Station2019/202020/212021/222022/232023/24Marham 010,000027,0009,000Waddington026,000023,0000Wittering010,000024,0000  b) The area of South Kesteven covers all or part of the following postcode areas: PE6, PE9, PE10, NG23, NG31, NG32, NG33, NG34. From the 2019/20 to 2023/24 Cold Weather Payment seasons, the above postcode areas are covered by various weather stations. These weather stations cover the following postcode areas, in Table 3, which include areas not in South Kesteven. Table 4 shows the number of cold weather payments to pensioners by weather station and cold weather season.Table 3: Postcode districts mapped to Weather Stations Weather stationPostcode Districts CoveredNottingham WatnallCV13, DE1-3, DE5-7, DE11-15, DE21-24, DE55-56, DE65, DE72-75, LE1-9, LE11-14, LE16-19, LE65, LE67, NG1-22, NG25, NG31-34.WaddingtonDN9-10, DN15-22, DN31-41, LN1-13, NG23-24, PE10-11, PE20-25.WitteringLE15, NN14-18, PE1-9, PE15-16, PE26-29 Table 4: Number of Cold Weather Payments to pensioners by weather station and Cold Weather SeasonWeather Station2019/202020/212021/222022/232023/24Nottingham Watnall060,000055,0000Waddington026,000023,0000Wittering010,000024,0000

Universal Credit: St Albans

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants have received tax credit overpayments since their migration to Universal Credit in St Albans district.

Jo Churchill: A claim for Universal Credit (UC) closes any tax credit claim with any associated overpayment arising from tax credits passed to DWP for recovery. The number of individuals in St Alban’s that had received a migration notice by Dec-23 was nil/negligible. We are therefore unable to provide the requested data to prevent releasing potentially disclosive information about individuals.

Universal Credit: St Albans

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people received a Universal Credit migration notice in St Albans district; and how many and what proportion of these people submitted a new claim.

Jo Churchill: The first migration notices for St Albans were issued from 1 Feb 2024. The number of individuals in St Alban’s that had received a migration notice by Dec-23 was nil/negligible. We are therefore unable to provide the requested data to prevent releasing potentially disclosive information about individuals.

Employment and Universal Credit: Wales

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the number of people who are in (a) paid employment and (b) receipt of universal credit in (i) Newport West constituency and (ii) Wales.

Jo Churchill: (a)The information requested is published and available at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/default.asp  (b)Monthly statistics on the number of people who are on Universal Credit by employment status, by parliamentary constituency and by domestic country, are published on Stat-Xplore, and are currently available to March 2024.

Universal Credit

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many additional (a) work coaches and (b) hours of work coach time are allocated to jobcentres to administer the Additional Jobcentre Support pilot.

Jo Churchill: The pilot is being delivered using existing Jobcentre resource.

Universal Credit

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) outcomes of the pre-testing phase and (b) results of phase (i) one and (ii) two of the Additional Jobcentre Support Pilot are for the number of claimants moving into (A) employment and (B) a different benefit category.

Jo Churchill: An evaluation of the Additional Jobcentre Support pilot is ongoing.

Universal Credit

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of people lost their entitlement to benefits during their transition from legacy benefits to Universal Credit in areas where that process had been completed.

Jo Churchill: Latest official statistics on the Universal Credit Managed Migration process can be found at: Move to Universal Credit statistics, July 2022 to December 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Social Security Benefits: Uprating

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether it remains his Department's policy for benefits to continue to be increased in line with inflation.

Jo Churchill: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is required by law to undertake an annual review of State Pensions and benefits.  The Secretary of State will commence his 2025/26 up-rating review in the Autumn.

Department for Work and Pensions: Termination of Employment

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff left his Department in each year since 2015.

Paul Maynard: The table below shows Staff in Post (SiP) numbers of leavers for each financial year (April - March.) To ensure compliance with GDPR, seven years of data is the maximum that we hold. All leavers in Financial Year - SiPDateNumber of Leavers - DWP17/186,92718/196,32019/207,14920/215,55821/2211,33222/2310,91023/247,299

Pensions: Consumer Information

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20580 on Pensions: Consumer Information, what the (a) estimated and (b) actual costs of the project are.

Paul Maynard: The Pensions Dashboards Programme (PDP) has spent £56.7M between 2019/20 and the end of February 2024 (with spend relating to 2023/24 subject to final audit). Whole life costs of the Pensions Dashboards Programme (2019/20 – 2026/27) are currently estimated by MaPS to be around £139M.

Pensions: Consumer Information

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20581 on Pensions: Consumer Information, what steps he plans to take to report progress towards the Dashboards Available Point to (a) Parliament and (b) other key stakeholders.

Paul Maynard: Before a specific date for the Dashboards Available Point can be determined, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions must first have regard to a number of relevant matters, including sufficient level of coverage, assurance of the safety, security and reliability of the service and testing of the user experience. Once satisfied that the dashboards ecosystem is ready to support widespread use of pensions dashboard services by the general public, following consultation with the Money and Pensions Service, The Pensions Regulator and the Financial Conduct Authority, the Secretary of State will then issue a notice at least six months in advance of the launch of pensions dashboard services.Officials in my department are working closely with key delivery partners to refine these relevant matters which includes recognition of keeping Parliament and the wider pensions industry informed of reporting progress towards the Dashboards Available Point. This is in line with our commitment of working closely with industry on successfully launching pensions dashboard services safely and securely at the earliest opportunity.

Cost of Living Payments: Disability

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the ending Disability Cost of Living Payments on people with disabilities.

Mims Davies: The Government has no plans to extend the Disability Cost of Living Payments past the 2023/24 round. Cost of Living Payments enabled us to target further support quickly during the rising cost of living pressures. As of March 2024, the rate of inflation has slowed, and the Government has also implemented uprating to other benefits to reflect increased costs. An evaluation of the Cost of Living Payments is underway. This will seek to understand their effectiveness as a means of support for low-income and vulnerable households.

Pneumoconiosis: Compensation

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department provided between 1 September 2023 and 23 February 2024 to people who wished to apply for a lump sum payment under the Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 who had (a) been awarded Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit as they had unilateral but not bilateral Pleural Thickening, PD9 and (b) been awarded Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit for asbestos-related lung cancer based on their employment history but had not been diagnosed with asbestosis, PD8A.

Mims Davies: Regulations which widened potential Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 scheme entitlement to include sufferers of unilateral diffuse pleural thickening and asbestos-related primary carcinoma of the lung (without asbestosis) came into force on 23 February 2024. Once the Department identified that these customers were not previously entitled to an award under the Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 scheme, the Department’s priority was to amend the relevant legislation as quickly as possible. An initial letter was sent on 09 January 2024 notifying asbestos support groups of the situation, and the Department’s intention to amend the legislation, and a follow-up letter was sent to asbestos support groups on 26 February 2024, confirming that the new regulations had now come into force. Eligible customers should receive award notifications as usual when their claim is processed.

Employment and Support Allowance

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the permitted working hours criteria for Employment and Support Allowance.

Mims Davies: There are currently no plans to increase the permitted work hours limit. The ESA permitted work rules strike a balance between encouraging claimants to build their confidence, undertake some part-time paid work, and plan a gradual move to sustained employment, while continuing to receive benefit. The permitted work earnings limit is reviewed annually and uprated in line with the National Living Wage.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy: Sports

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with sports governing bodies on the prevention of chronic traumatic encephalopathy among professional sportspeople.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department has had with professional sports associations on providing support for former professional sportspeople living with chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions her Department is having with relevant stakeholders to reduce the prevalence of Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) amongst sportspeople.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether independent guidance will be issued to sports governing bodies on prevention of chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

Stuart Andrew: The safety, wellbeing and welfare of everyone taking part in sport is absolutely paramount. National Governing Bodies are responsible for the regulation of their sports, and for ensuring that appropriate measures are in place to protect participants from harm. The government expects sports to do all they can to protect their players.I welcome work by sports to provide practical support to former players who develop neurodegenerative conditions. This includes the work of player associations, who play a valuable role in supporting players by providing short and long-term support to those affected by sporting injuries. I have discussed the issue of dementia with the Chief Executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, specifically the need for the Premier League to make progress on their promise to allocate funding towards a new Football Brain Health Fund for players impacted by dementia. The Brain Health Fund was subsequently announced in September 2023. The fund aims to assist former players and their families who have been impacted by dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions.The Government continues to take the issue of head injuries very seriously. In December 2021 DCMS published its Command Paper report on concussion in sport, outlining the steps the Government is undertaking to help reduce risks associated with head injuries by improving understanding, awareness, prevention and treatment of concussion in sport. As part of this, in April 2023 the Government announced the first UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport, in conjunction with the Sport and Recreation Alliance. This guidance is intended to be a helpful tool in reducing the risks associated with concussion and marks an important step in making sport safer for thousands of people who enjoy sport at a grassroots level, as well as an aid to professional sports.Further research on the links between health, dementia and contact sport is needed to better understand the issue. To that end, DCMS established a Sports Concussion Research Forum in July 2022 to identify key research questions that need answering in this important area. The research forum is now formulating a report to identify the priority research questions for the sector that need to be addressed, with the final report expected in 2024.The Government remains committed to working with sports to build on the positive work that is already taking place to mitigate the causes and effects of concussion in sport.

Sportsgrounds: Lincolnshire

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help improve the quality of sports fields in (a) Lincolnshire and (b) South Holland and the Deepings constituency.

Stuart Andrew: The Government is committed to delivering top class sports facilities across the country, so that everyone can take part in sport and physical activity. As part of this commitment, the Government is delivering an historic level of direct investment to build or upgrade thousands of grassroots sport facilities across the UK.Between 2021 and 2025, the UK Government is delivering investment of over £400 million to build or upgrade thousands of grassroots facilities across the UK, including multi-sport pitches, tennis courts, and swimming pools and leisure centres.Since 2021, South Holland and the Deepings has received investment of £600,149 from the Football Foundation across four projects, including a new artificial grass pitch at Holbeach United Community Sports Academy. All projects can be viewed here on gov.uk.South Holland and the Deepings has also received £102,251 from the Park Tennis Court Renovation Programme (co-funded by the Government and the Lawn Tennis Association) for Ayscoughfee Gardens and £29,651 from our Swimming Pool Support Fund for Castle Sports Centre and Swimming Pool.Overall, Lincolnshire has received £1,258,322 from the Football Foundation. Lincolnshire has also received £169,027 from the Park Tennis Court Renovation Programme and £492,261 from the Swimming Pool Support Fund.

UK Youth Parliament

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to help (a) continue the operation of the UK Youth Parliament and (b) ensure all regions receive adequate (i) financial and (ii) operational support to facilitate the Parliament.

Stuart Andrew: I was sorry to learn about the closure of the British Youth Council and want to express gratitude for its work over the years. Government is committed to the delivery of the UK Youth Parliament and intends to use funding allocated to the British Youth Council in 2024/25 to support the programme. We are working alongside previous UK Youth Parliament delivery partners from English regions and the devolved administrations, to understand the implications of the British Youth Council’s closure. We have been working at pace to identify a suitable organisation which can hold overall grant management responsibility for the UKYP 24/25. A preferred candidate has been identified and we are currently undertaking final due diligence checks and negotiating terms and I will update the house as soon as next steps have been formalised.

Schools: Sports

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to (a) enable partnership working and (b) increase collaboration between schools, youth organisations and sport providers.

Stuart Andrew: The Government recognises the importance of encouraging partnership working between schools, youth organisations, and sports providers to provide opportunities for young people. Our current Enrichment Partnerships pilot, which was a joint bid with the Department for Education, is working closely with schools, youth organisations, councils and enrichment and sports providers to test whether greater coordination locally can enhance school enrichment offers and remove barriers to participation, create efficiencies (reducing the burden on school staff resources) and unlock existing funding and provision.The Government-funded network of 450 School Games Organisers (SGO) works directly with local schools and sports providers to coordinate inclusive sport competitions across 40 different sports and activities. In the 2022/23 academic year, the SGO network provided over 2.2 million opportunities for children to take part in local, inclusive sport and physical activity.Our updated statutory guidance and peer review programme for Local Authorities aims to encourage best practice of local youth provision and advice on how to create a sufficient and unified approach to out of school provision for young people. We also are providing £320,000 to Regional Youth Work Units across England (RYWUs) over the next two years, to build upon their current practices and ensure a consistent minimum level of regional leadership. The funding will support RYWUs to influence youth policy, develop partnerships, support and grow the youth workforce, ensure young people's voices are heard, and improve collaboration across the regions.Working with the Young People Foundation Trust, DCMS also encourages and supports local youth partnerships through the Local Partnerships Fund. The fund is designed to encourage productive connections between youth services and councils, schools, local sporting and smaller community based organisations, as well as local businesses and funders so they can provide a more holistic experience for young people.

Football Governance Bill

Mark Eastwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with (a) FIFA and (b) UEFA on (i) the compatibility of the Football Governance Bill with their own regulations and (ii) ensuring that the enforcement of the Bill will not lead to (A) financial and (B) sporting sanctions being placed on football clubs.

Stuart Andrew: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport have met with FIFA and UEFA at Ministerial and Official level on an on-going basis as part of the engagement with industry in relation to the Football Governance Bill, which received its First Reading on 19 March 2024. During these engagements, discussions have included the compatibility of the ` Independent Football Regulator’s regulatory regime with FIFA’s and UEFA’s own regulations. We are confident that the Bill is compatible with FIFA and UEFA rules and will not lead to financial and sporting sanctions being placed on football clubs by FIFA or UEFA. We will continue to engage FIFA and UEFA as the Bill moves through parliament.

Tourism: Greater London

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much VisitBritain spent on the promotion of tourism to London under its GREAT-funded international campaigns in financial years (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23, and (c) 2023-24.

Julia Lopez: As VisitBritain’s GREAT-marketing campaigns cover the whole of Britain, they do not break down spend by specific regions.

BBC: Finance

Kevin Brennan: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she has taken to publicly advertise application opportunities to the BBC funding model review panel.

Julia Lopez: The BBC Funding Review is looking at how alternative funding models could help secure the broadcaster’s long-term sustainability amid an evolving media landscape, increased competition and changing audience behaviour, while reducing the burden on licence fee payers. It is a government-led review, supported by an expert panel that incorporates a broad range of views from across the sector, providing advice and external challenge on the issues set out in the review’s Terms of Reference, which are available on gov.uk..The Panel does not have any decision making powers, and is one aspect of the Government’s BBC Funding Model Review.The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport appointed Panel members based on their expertise across relevant sectors, including television, radio, news and international relations. The experts were selected in consultation with industry stakeholders based on their experience and knowledge of wide ranging issues at the heart of the UK media sector such as the role of Public Service Broadcasters, press sustainability and content for children and young adults. Panel membership is voluntary. The Expert Panel has no legal status and was therefore not set up under the Cabinet Office guidelines for public appointments.

Future News Pilot Fund

Andy Carter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many grants were made to local newspapers under the Future News Fund pilot; and what the value was of each grant.

Julia Lopez: The Future News Fund sought to invest in new technological prototypes, start-ups and innovative business models to explore new ways of sustaining the industry in this changing landscape. In 2019, Government invested £2 million in the Future News Fund, which received 178 applications. Grants were awarded to 19 projects, ranging from funding to support the trial of a digital wallet model where publishers were able to offer the option to readers to pay for news on a casual basis, to funding to a local news publisher to build a new system to involve members and the local community in the reporting of local news.It was designed to be open to as wide a range of innovations as possible, including those from existing news publishers. The government was not involved in deciding which organisations should receive funding. Nesta made these decisions independently with advice from industry experts. Nesta’s evaluation of the Fund was completed in 2020, and can be found alongside further information on the grantees here: https://www.nesta.org.uk/project/future-news-fund/

Museums and Galleries: Copyright

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps to tackle the practice of museums marginally editing non-copyrighted media in order to charge people to use that media.

Julia Lopez: Museums operate independently from the Government, and are responsible for managing their own commercial activities, which can include maintaining databases of images and other media. It is for museums to determine appropriate terms and conditions, in accordance with their internal policies.Depending on their operating models, different museums will adopt differing approaches to monetising their spaces and collections to reinvest in their public programmes, expanding their reach and impact.

BBC: Advertising

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the BBC’s proposal to introduce advertising on podcasts and on-demand content streamed through third-party services on the commercial (a) news and (b) audio sectors.

Julia Lopez: The BBC has responsibilities set out in its Charter to avoid unnecessary adverse impacts on the market, which were underscored in the Government’s recent Mid-Term Review. The Government will continue to monitor the effectiveness of the reforms as we approach the renewal of the BBC’s Charter.As the BBC’s independent regulator, it is for Ofcom to robustly hold the BBC to account in meeting its obligations to both its audiences and the market, as set out in the Royal Charter and Framework Agreement.

National Trust: Camping Sites

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people were subject to legal action for camping on National Trust property in each of the last five years.

Julia Lopez: DCMS does not collect this information from the National Trust. It is an independent charity, not a departmental Arm’s Length Body. Queries on this matter are best passed to the National Trust directly.

National Trust: Litter

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people were fined for littering on National Trust property in the last five years.

Julia Lopez: DCMS does not collect this information from the National Trust. It is an independent charity, not a departmental Arm’s Length Body. Queries on this matter are best passed to the National Trust directly.

Heritage Lottery Fund: Northern Ireland

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will list Heritage Lottery Fund Northern Ireland grants in each of the last five years.

Julia Lopez: Information on grants are publicly available on the National Lottery Database, found at https://nationallottery.dcms.gov.uk/data.Between 26 March 2019 and 21 February 2024, 215 grants were awarded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, totalling £25,962,712.Of these awards, 7 were made in the North Down constituency, with awards ranging from £4,700 to £1,048,020.

Events Industry

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she is taking to encourage international events organisers to hold events in the UK.

Julia Lopez: The UK has a strong track record of hosting international events.From the Women’s Euros to the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, these events bring economic and social benefits across the country, and allow us to showcase the UK to the world. My department works with organisations including VisitBritain and UKSport to encourage international event organisers to hold events in the UK.UKSport recently published its new major event hosting target list for the coming decade, and we will continue to work closely with UKSport and national governing bodies to ensure we develop a strong pipeline of future hosting opportunities that drive significant economic and social benefits for communities across the UK.

Ministry of Justice

Sentencing

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an estimate of the average number of words in a judge's sentencing remarks from court proceedings at HM Courts and Tribunals over the last 12 months.

Mike Freer: Management information held about transcript requests is limited, and the information requested is not held centrally. Contracted suppliers are required to provide HM Courts and Tribunals Service with certain data, including the folio count, but that data could not be disaggregated to report specifically on requests for sentencing remarks per se, and in any event would not enable any report on word (rather than page) count.

Sentencing

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an estimate of the average cost of obtaining the (a) sentencing remarks and (b) judge's summing-up to HM Courts and Tribunals over the last 12 months.

Mike Freer: Management information held about transcript requests is limited, and the information requested is not held centrally. Contracted suppliers are required to provide HM Courts and Tribunals Service with certain data, including raw data on individual application costs, but that data could not be disaggregated to report specifically on requests for sentencing remarks or summing up per se.

Five Wells Prison: Staff

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison (a) officers and (b) other staff have been (i) investigated, (ii) arrested and (iii) charged in relation to (A) drug smuggling and (B) corruption at HMP Five Wells in the last 18 months.

Edward Argar: There is no place for any form of corruption or unacceptable behaviour in the Prison Service. Such behaviour is contrary to our core values and will not be tolerated. The Ministry of Justice’s Counter Corruption Unit and Tackling Unacceptable Behaviour Unit are working to ensure that professional standards of behaviour are maintained.In relation to the various items of information requested, it is necessary to consider whether providing information in relation to a small number of cases could lead to the identification of individuals, in a way that would constitute a breach of our statutory obligations under data protection legislation. As we believe that the release of this information would risk such identification, it is not possible to provide the figures requested.

Berwyn Prison: Staff

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison (a) officers and (b) other staff have been (i) investigated, (ii) arrested and (iii) charged in relation to (A) drug smuggling and (B) corruption at HMP Berwyn in the last two years.

Edward Argar: There is no place for any form of corruption or unacceptable behaviour in the Prison Service. Such behaviour is contrary to our core values and will not be tolerated. The Ministry of Justice’s Counter Corruption Unit and Tackling Unacceptable Behaviour Unit are working to ensure that professional standards of behaviour are maintained.In relation to the various items of information requested, it is necessary to consider whether providing information in relation to a small number of cases could lead to the identification of individuals, in a way that would constitute a breach of our statutory obligations under data protection legislation. As we believe that the release of this information would risk such identification, it is not possible to provide the figures requested.

Prisoners' Release

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department collects data on the number of individuals released on the End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme who have committed a criminal offence after their release.

Edward Argar: We are constantly monitoring the use of End of Custody Supervised Licence (ECSL) and its impact.We are taking action to drive down the reoffending rate for all offenders by investing in a wide range of rehabilitative interventions to get them into skills training, work, and stable accommodation. This includes delivering our groundbreaking transitional accommodation service, known as Community Accommodation Service – Tier 3 (CAS-3), so prison-leavers have a guaranteed 12 weeks of basic, temporary accommodation to provide a stable base on release. By January 2023, the proportion of offenders housed on the first night of their release from custody was 7.6 percentage points higher in CAS3 regions versus non-CAS3 regions.

Prisons: Civil Disorder

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2024 to Question 17880 on Prisons: Civil Disorder, whether his Department previously had a minimum staffing requirement for Operation Tornado teams in each prison.

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to page 14 of the document published by HM Prison Service on 31 August 2005 entitled Use of Force, whether his Department has previously had a policy of ensuring each prison had a minimum commitment for the number of Operation Tornado officers trained in each prison.

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether HM Prison and Probation Service has made an assessment of the safety of (a) prisoners and (b) prison officers in prisons that do not have Tornado trained staff.

Edward Argar: Operation Tornado is a national mutual aid plan by which prisons support one another in the event of a serious incident or occurrence requiring a reinforcement of staff. Operation Tornado is employed by HMPPS for three main reasons:In response to a serious incident requiring a reinforcement of staff.In response to other events or crisis requiring additional staff, who may not necessarily need to be Tornado trained.To aid the transfer of prisoners in the event of a serious incident or the threat of one (with the GOLD commander’s agreement).HMPPS aims to have 2,100 volunteers trained in readiness for Operation Tornado. Since the inception of Operation Tornado in the late 1980s, HMPPS has allocated a commitment to each prison for how many Tornado staff they should aim to have trained. HMPPS monitors the number of staff available for deployment and offer training spaces to ensure resilience to respond to serious incidents.In the event of a serious incident, all prisons, including those who have a commitment of zero, receive the same level of support from the Operation Response and Resilience Unit and Tornado trained staff from other prisons if required.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Darwin Plus

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress his Department has made on implementing the Darwin Plus fund.

Rebecca Pow: The UK Government has recently expanded the Darwin Plus programme to better meet the needs of the UK Overseas Territories. In 2023, Defra introduced to Darwin Plus a new local scheme aimed at building capacity and growing local economies in-territory, and a new strategic scheme for fostering greater innovation, ambition and collaboration in and between Territories. On 22 April 2024, Defra will open the programme to new applications. The longstanding Darwin Plus Fellowships scheme will be rebranded as Darwin Plus People and Skills to appeal to applicants beyond academia. Under its new name, this scheme will welcome applications from Territory nationals and long-term residents for activities which will upskill them and support them to meet long-term strategic outcomes for their natural environments. The UK Government remains committed to keeping the structure of the programme under review, with a focus on suitability and practical conservation.

Tree Planting: Suffolk

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many trees have been planted on behalf of his Department in (a) Suffolk and (b) Suffolk Coastal constituency since 2020.

Rebecca Pow: The Forestry Commission publishes statistics on new planting of woodland, and trees outside woodland, in England. These can be found in Forestry Commission Key Performance Indicators. These statistics are reported for each financial year in thousands of hectares. This Government has not set specific targets for individual constituencies and the reporting statistic the hon. Member has requested is not currently available. Our England Trees Action Plan has kickstarted tree planting, we have planted nearly 13 million trees over the past 3 years. Last year we planted 3,600 hectares of new woodland and trees outside of woodland, this represents the highest planting rate for nearly a decade and an almost 40% increase on the previous year.

Rights of Way: Finance

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding available to highway authorities to carry out statutory duties on public rights of way.

Rebecca Pow: The final Local Government Finance Settlement for 2024-25 makes available up to £64.7 billion, an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £4.5 billion or 7.5% in cash terms on 2023-24. This is an above inflation increase. Local highway authorities themselves are best placed to understand local priorities and allocate funding accordingly to fulfil their statutory rights of way duties.

Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions officials in his Department have had with international zoological accreditation and certification bodies on future regulations under the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023.

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions officials in his Department have had with international zoological facilities on future regulations under the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023.

Anthony Mangnall: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with international zoological accreditation and certification bodies on future regulations under the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023.

Anthony Mangnall: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with international zoological facilities on future regulations under the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023.

Sir Mark Spencer: This Government continues to make animal welfare a priority. The Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023 provides a framework for the introduction of a ban on the advertising and offering for sale of specific low-welfare animal activities abroad. It is an important step in protecting animals from considerable suffering and unacceptable practices. To this end, we have been generally engaging with stakeholders domestically and internationally and are currently exploring several options.

Climate Change: Investment

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2024 to Question 19037 on Climate Change: Investment, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing an additional £3 billion per year for nature restoration for adaptation as set out in the report by the Climate Change Committee entitled Investment for a well-adapted UK, published on 1 February 2023; and how much funding his Department plans to provide for nature restoration and adaptation in each of the next ten years.

Rebecca Pow: Through the Environment Act 2021, the Government committed to the legally binding target of creating or restoring more than 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat outside of protected site by 2042. Taking actions for nature, including protecting our land and species, is also a core part of our third National Adaptation Programme. This Government is not currently planning to make an additional assessment around providing £3bn per year on nature restoration for adaptation and cannot commit to funding beyond the life of this parliament, but regularly reviews budgets as part of business planning and spending review decisions. Defra has guaranteed an average £2.4bn annual budget for the farming sector for the life of this Parliament. This includes paying farmers to restore valuable habitats such as lowland peat and to engage in sustainable agroforestry and wetland management, which will support adaptation to climate change. A range of bespoke funding also exists to support nature restoration. Our recently awarded Species Survival Fund is supporting 20 projects with £25m for habitat creation and restoration, while Natural England has launched 12 Nature Recovery Projects spanning over 300,000 hectares since 2022, with 13 more to come by 2025.

Tree Planting: Finance

Mr Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what (a) his Department's budget for and (b) the amount spent on the planting of trees was in each year since 2010.

Rebecca Pow: Data on tree-specific funding is only available from 2020, when the Nature for Climate Tree Programme was established. Since then, Defra has had a capital spend (CDEL) of £232 million on planting trees in England.The planting of trees has also been funded by Countryside Stewardship payments. Since 2016, £120 million has been claimed planting and managing trees and for managing and enhancing woodlands.

Nature Conservation: Investment

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the level of private investment in (a) terrestrial and (b) marine nature recovery in the last year for which figures are available.

Rebecca Pow: As set out in Mobilising Green Investment: 2023 Green Finance Strategy, we are committed to monitoring progress against our target to raise £1bn in private finance into nature’s recovery in England every year by 2030. The government has not produced an official annual estimate of private finance into nature’s recovery, as no reliable measures are yet in place. My department is developing a methodology for tracking this private finance. We will publish our first annual estimate, using this methodology, once data is available.

Nature Conservation: Finance

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the target set in the Autumn Statement 2021 for private finance to support nature’s recovery, what proportion of the £1 billion relates to the marine environment.

Rebecca Pow: The Government is committed to mobilising private finance into nature’s recovery in England against our target, both on land and at sea. We have not set specific targets for the terrestrial and marine environment respectively.

Incinerators: Wisbech

Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had discussions with Ministers in his Department on the MVV Environment incinerator proposal in his constituency.

Steve Barclay: As Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, I have not had any meetings with my ministers to discuss the proposed MVV Environment incinerator in my constituency.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will publish the attendance of each meeting of the AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group in (a) 2023 and (b) 2024.

Saqib Bhatti: The working group on copyright and AI met under terms of reference available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-governments-code-of-practice-on-copyright-and-ai. This information for 2023 has previously been disclosed pursuant to a Freedom of Information request, and is set out in the following table: Date of meetingAttendees, by organisation05/06/2023 (AI firms and research sector only)The Entrepreneurs Network; IP Federation; Stability AI; Knowledge Rights 21; Google DeepMind; Tech UK; British Library; UK Research and Innovation (UKRI); Microsoft; Synthesia IPO; Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS); Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)06/06/2023 (right holders only)RELX; Professional Publishers Association; British Association of Picture Library Agencies (BAPLA); News Media Association; Alliance for IP; UK Music; NLA Media Access; Association of Photographers; Financial Times; Copyright Licensing Agency; British Phonographic Industry (BPI); Equity; Publishers Association; Creators’ Rights Alliance; Music Publishers Association; British Screen Forum; Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS); Copyright Clearance Center; British Copyright Council; British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC); Premier League IPO; DCMS; CMA13/06/2023RELX; Professional Publishers Association; The Entrepreneurs Network; IP Federation; Stability AI; Knowledge Rights 21; News Media Association; Alliance for IP; Council of Music Makers; UK Music; NLA Media Access; Association of Photographers; Copyright Licensing Agency; Financial Times; BAPLA; Google DeepMind; Tech UK; Equity; vAIsual; British Library; Creators’ Rights Alliance; Music Publishers Association; UKRI; British Screen Forum; DACS; Copyright Clearance Center; British Copyright Council; Microsoft; BPI; Innovate UK; BBC IPO; DCMS; Office for AI (OAI); CMA30/06/2023Professional Publishers Association; BAPLA; Knowledge Rights 21; Publishers Association; News Media Association; Alliance for IP; The Entrepreneurs Network; UK Music; NLA Media Access; Association of Photographers; Copyright Licensing Agency; Financial Times; Startup Coalition; Equity; vAIsual; British Library; Creators’ Rights Alliance; Music Publishers Association; UKRI; British Screen Forum; DACS; Copyright Clearance Center; British Copyright Council; Microsoft; BPI; Tech UK; Innovate UK; BBC; RELX; Council of Music Makers IPO; DCMS; OAI13/09/2023 (right holders only)Professional Publishers Association; British Film Institute (BFI); Association of Photographers; Copyright Licensing Agency; Condé Nast; Guardian Media Group; Publishers Association; BPI; Equity IPO22/09/2023Association of Photographers; Getty Images; BBC; vAIsual; Microsoft; Music Publishers Association; Startup Coalition; British Copyright Council; Stability AI IPO26/09/2023RELX; Copyright Clearance Center; Copyright Licensing Agency; Alliance for IP; vAIsual; The Entrepreneurs Network; British Copyright Council; IP Federation; Synthesia; Publishers Association; WB Discovery; Council of Music Makers; Financial Times; Guardian Media Group; Startup Coalition29/09/2023Alliance for IP; British Copyright Council; Creators’ Rights Alliance; Equity; Stability AI; DACS; Microsoft; Innovate UK; BFI; British Screen Forum; Reading University; UK Music; Professional Publishers Association IPO04/10/2023Creators’ Rights Alliance; Equity; UK Music; Professional Publishers Association; Tech UK; News Media Association; Association of Photographers; Getty Images; The Entrepreneurs Network; BPI IPO05/10/2023 (AI firms only)The Entrepreneurs Network; Startup Coalition; Microsoft; Stability AI; vAIsual IPO06/10/2023British Library; UKRI; BFI; Tech UK; Alliance for IP; Professional Publishers Association; RELX; Copyright Clearance Center; Turing Institute; Knowledge Rights 21 IPO12/10/2023Professional Publishers Association; BAPLA; The Entrepreneurs Network; Knowledge Rights 21; Publishers Association; News Media Association; Alliance for IP; Council of Music Makers; UK Music; NLA Media Access; Association of Photographers; Copyright Licensing Agency; Financial Times; BPI; Startup Coalition; Equity; vAIsual; Guardian Media Group; Creators’ Rights Alliance; Music Publishers Association; UKRI; British Screen Forum; BFI; Copyright Clearance Center; British Copyright Council; IP Federation; Microsoft; Innovate UK; BBC IPO; DCMS; OAI; Department for Science, Innovation and Technology; CMA The group did not meet in 2024.

AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, on what dates the AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group met in (a) 2023 and (b) 2024.

Saqib Bhatti: The working group on copyright and AI met under terms of reference available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-governments-code-of-practice-on-copyright-and-ai.In 2023, the working group met as follows:5 June – AI firms and research sector only6 June – right holders only13 June, 30 June and 12 October – plenary sessionsSelected members of the working group were also invited in 2023 to discuss themes arising from previous discussions and according to areas of their interest, as follows:13, 22, 26 and 29 September4, 5 and 6 OctoberThe group did not meet in 2024.

AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will publish minutes of the AI and Copyright Code of Practice Working Group meetings in (a) 2023 and (b) 2024.

Saqib Bhatti: The working group on copyright and AI met under terms of reference available at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-governments-code-of-practice-on-copyright-and-ai. The group did not meet in 2024. In the interests of enabling candid discussion of the issues, the terms of reference state that summary notes will not be published. In the interests of commercial confidentiality and as the consideration of these policy issues is still ongoing, I do not consider it appropriate to publish notes of these meetings at this time.

Disease Control: Research

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding her Department has provided to support research into pandemic preparedness in the financial year 2023-24.

Andrew Griffith: DHSC are the lead department for pandemic preparedness, a core element of the UK Biological Security Strategy.

Digital Technology and Internet: Disadvantaged

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Answer of 15 July 2022 to Question 33838 on Digital Technology and Internet: Disadvantaged, what steps she is taking to help tackle digital exclusion; and whether her Department plans to take steps to help individuals with the cost of personal internet.

Saqib Bhatti: The Government has been clear that ensuring that no one is left behind in the digital age is a key priority and continues to take steps to offer the support needed.Digital inclusion is a cross-cutting issue that spans social engagement, education, employment, access to services and many more elements of everyday life. Responsibility for relevant policies and activities, including monitoring and evaluation, sit across government.The Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure households across the country can access fast, reliable digital infrastructure. Superfast broadband is now available in over 97% of the UK, over 80% of households can access gigabit broadband, and 4G mobile is available to 99% of the population from at least one network provider. The Government is also investing £5 billion through our flagship Project Gigabit programme to bring gigabit broadband to reach hard-to-reach communities.The Government established a cross-Whitehall ministerial group in response to a recommendation from the House of Lords Communication and Digital Committee’s report on ‘Digital Exclusion’, published in June 2023. The ministerial group aims to drive progress and accountability on digital inclusion priorities across Government.The group has met twice, in September 2023 and March 2024, with attendance from the Cabinet Office, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, Department for Culture, Media & Sport, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Education, and His Majesty's Treasury.To support those for whom cost may be a barrier, the Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure market provision of broadband and mobile social tariffs. These low-cost, commercial products are available from 28 different providers, across 99% of the UK and start at just £10 per month.

Broadband: Housing

Selaine Saxby: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what information her Department holds on which businesses provide broadband connections on new housing developments.

Julia Lopez: The Building etc. (Amendment) (England) (No. 2) Regulations 2022 require developers of new build homes in England to install the gigabit-ready physical infrastructure necessary for gigabit-capable connections. Additionally, and subject to a £2,000 cost cap per premise, developers need to install a gigabit-capable connection. Where a developer is unable to secure a gigabit-capable connection within the cost cap, a next best technology connection available within the same cost cap must be installed. This means first a superfast connection, and then at least a broadband connection is required.The requirements are technologically neutral and allow for existing and future wired and fixed wireless connectivity options, so as not to stifle technological innovation. This enables housing developers to make commercial decisions and secure connections from any network operator providing performance criteria are met. Ensuring facilitated connections are appropriate for a specific development.Thinkbroadband statistics for homes built in 2023 indicate that 98% of new homes developed across the UK have access to a gigabit-connection through Fibre to the Premises (FTTP). The provision of Gigabit infrastructure for new build homes comes from many different network operators. Some housing developers have made arrangements to ensure that new build developments are served by multiple network operators providing access to numerous broadband service providers. The Department does not hold data on the proportion of new build housing developments to which individual network operators provide broadband connections. Further information on the breakdown of the new build home broadband market is available from ISPreview.

UK Research and Innovation: Colonialism

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many UK Research and Innovation projects have (a) titles and (b) subjects containing (i) decolonisation, (ii) colonialism, (iii) colonial and (iv) decolonising since 2019.

Andrew Griffith: These terms are used across a range of research areas and have different meanings, from the humanities and societal sciences, to biological sciences and microbial research. The following data is sourced from Gateway to Research (https://gtr.ukri.org/), which supplies information about research and innovation projects and organisations funded by UKRI. Of approximately 37,000 active projects initiated from 2019 onwards: 77 had titles referring to ‘Decolonisation/Decolonising’, 12 had titles referring to ‘Colonialism’ and 61 had titles mentioning the word ‘Colonial’.

Ofcom: Pay

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Ofcom staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Julia Lopez: Ofcom makes remuneration information available through its annual report and accounts, including detailed information on the pay of senior executives. These can be found online here: www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/annual-reports-and-plans. Remuneration policy is set by Ofcom’s People Committee. The basic salary for all colleagues is determined by considering each colleague’s responsibilities, skills and experience, together with relevant market benchmarking analysis. Ofcom conduct an annual equal pay audit for gender, ethnicity, and disability. They do not pay London weighting.

Ofcom: Staff

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many employees work for Ofcom’s Online Safety directorate as of 25 March 2024.

Julia Lopez: As of March 2024, there are 202 colleagues in the Online Safety Directorate. Beyond the Online Safety Directorate, employees within Ofcom's Legal and Enforcement, Research and Analytics, Strategy and Research, and Corporate groups also work full time on Ofcom's online safety work.

Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum: Information Commissioner's Office

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding the Information Commissioner's Office provided to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many Information Commissioner's Office employees were seconded to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.

Julia Lopez: Costs for the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF) budget were split equally between the DRCF member organisations. The Information Commissioner's Office contribution to the DRCF's budget for 2022-23 financial year was £81,754. This does not include costs for DRCF secondee roles funded by the ICO. The Information Commissioner's Office provided three employee secondee roles to the DRCF over the 2022-23 financial year.

Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum: Ofcom

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many Ofcom employees were seconded to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.

Julia Lopez: In 2022–23, Ofcom funded 4 FTE positions in the DRCF. Ofcom does not technically second employees to the DRCF, rather resources are allocated to support the core team.

Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum: Ofcom

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how much funding Ofcom provided to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.

Julia Lopez: Ofcom's DRCF expenditure for 2022-23 is £82,000.

Information Commissioner's Office: Pay

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Information Commissioner's Office staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Julia Lopez: The Information Commissioner's Office does not operate a location-based pay policy. The pay ranges by grade (for all locations) are as follows:   MinMaxLevel B23,11926,023Level C25,38332,030Level D31,68940,418Level E40,56551,730Level F52,94467,530Level G66,06885,113Level G284,193108,611Level H110,624157,960

Research: Gulf States

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department is taking steps to help promote research links with Gulf States.

Andrew Griffith: As outlined in the Science and Technology Framework, global collaboration is vital in supporting UK science and technology capabilities and my department is working to strengthen strategic partnerships with governments, industry and academia across the globe. Partnerships will differ in scope and depth but given the strong economic growth and expanding populations of the Gulf States they represent an outsize opportunity to benefit the UK and strengthen our science and technology systems. Consistent with this, last month, I signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Research and Innovation (R&I) with Saudi Arabia – my first in the region - to help position the UK as a research and innovation partner of choice and create new opportunities for UK researchers and businesses.

Digital Technology: Disadvantaged

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help improve digital inclusion for people who are unable to access the internet.

Julia Lopez: The Government recognises that access to the internet is increasingly essential for full participation in society and has taken steps to ensure households across the UK are able to access fast, reliable mobile and broadband services. The Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure superfast broadband connections extend to over 97% of the UK. Similarly, 4G mobile coverage is available to 99% of the population from at least one network provider. The Government is also investing £5 billion through our flagship Project Gigabit programme to bring gigabit broadband to reach hard-to-reach communities. We recognise that infrastructure is only part of the story. To support those for whom cost may be a barrier, the Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure market provision of broadband and mobile social tariffs. These low-cost, commercial products are available from 28 different providers, across 99% of the UK and start at just £10 per month.

Digital Technology: Disadvantaged

Mr Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to help improve digital inclusion for people that are unable to access the internet.

Julia Lopez: The Government recognises that access to the internet is increasingly essential for full participation in society and has taken steps to ensure households across the UK are able to access fast, reliable mobile and broadband services. The Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure superfast broadband connections extend to over 97% of the UK. Similarly, 4G mobile coverage is available to 99% of the population from at least one network provider. The Government is also investing £5 billion through our flagship Project Gigabit programme to bring gigabit broadband to reach hard-to-reach communities. We recognise that infrastructure is only part of the story. To support those for whom cost may be a barrier, the Government has worked closely with the telecoms industry to ensure market provision of broadband and mobile social tariffs. These low-cost, commercial products are available from 28 different providers, across 99% of the UK and start at just £10 per month.

Science and Technology: Foreign Investment in UK

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the UK Science and Technology Framework, last updated on 9 February 2024, what assessment her Department has made of its progress against the goal of working with industry and philanthropic partners to increase inward investment by Summer Recess 2023.

Andrew Griffith: DSIT has made significant strides towards enhancing collaboration with industry and philanthropic partners to bolster investment. Last year’s successful Global Investment Summit attracted more than £29 billion, including landmark investments in AI, life sciences and quantum. We will continue to build on our collaborative approach to increase philanthropic and private investment, including working with DBT and the Office for Investment, to further our investment ambitions. We announced £25 million for UK Biobank conditional on philanthropic match-funding within a consortium. So far, we have secured £16 million from philanthropists Eric Schmidt and Ken Griffin, and work is underway to secure further donations.

Innovation and Research: Infrastructure

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the UK Science and Technology Framework, last updated on 9 February 2024, what her Department's planned timetable is for publishing the long-term national plan for research and innovation infrastructure.

Andrew Griffith: As per the S&T Framework update published in February, the government expects to publish a national plan for research and innovation infrastructure within 12 months.

Research and Science: Business

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Higher Education Statistics Authority report entitled Higher Education Provider Data: Business and Community Interaction 2022/23, published on of 4 April 2024, what assessment her Department has made of the reasons for the decline in the number of spinouts from 2021-22 to 2022-23.

Andrew Griffith: There were five fewer spinouts owned by Higher Education Providers formed in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22 based on the Business and Community Interaction data. However, this was accompanied by an 8.9% increase in the number of spinouts surviving at least three years. The government is committed to increasing the commercialisation of university research and accepted all the recommendations of the independent review of university spinouts in November 2023.

Higher Education: Finance

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the to the Higher Education Statistics Authority report entitled Higher Education Provider Data: Business and Community Interaction 2022/23 published on 4 April 2024, what assessment her department has made of the reasons for the decline in higher education income from collaborative research with business from 2021-22 to 2022-23.

Andrew Griffith: Higher education income from collaborative research with business dropped between 2021/22 and 2022/23 from £1.89bn to £1.78bn. However, this is still consistent with an upward trend from 2018/19. The government supports university knowledge exchange activities business, through Higher Education Innovation Funding which is currently at its highest ever level at £260m a year with an additional £20m to support business and commercialisation activities.

Treasury

Funerals: Pre-payment

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) the Financial Conduct Authority made of the implications for their policies of the speed of growth of the funeral plan market between 2001 and 2022.

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the proportion of funeral plan companies that failed to gain regulation following the new regulatory regime in the funeral plan market.

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he made of the implications for his policies of changes in the number of funeral plan companies following the announcement of regulatory change in 2018.

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department made an assessment of the potential merits of requiring the immediate regulation of funeral plan companies that (a) were founded and (b) changed ownership after the announcement of regulatory change in 2018.

Bim Afolami: In January 2021, the government legislated to bring all pre-paid funeral plan providers and intermediaries within the regulatory remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) from 29 July 2022. This has ensured that, for the first time,1.6 million funeral plan customers are protected by compulsory and robust regulation. The government consulted widely on the regulation of pre-paid funeral plans. It published a consultation, draft statutory instrument, and impact assessment in June 2019. The FCA also published a consultation and detailed cost-benefit analysis on their proposed regulatory rules for the pre-paid funeral plan sector in March 2021.

Funerals: Pre-payment

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times a breach of the Regulated Activities Order by a funeral plan company was reported to the Financial Conduct Authority in the last three years.

Bim Afolami: This is a matter for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which is independent from Government. The FCA will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.

Funerals: Pre-payment

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what regular reviews of the funeral plan market his Department undertook between 2001 and 2018.

Bim Afolami: The government works closely with the FCA to continually review the regulatory perimeter to ensure that the right balance is struck between proportionately protecting consumers, minimising costs on business, and ensuring consumers have access to useful and affordable financial products and services. Once made aware of consumer detriment in the pre-paid funeral plans sector, the government investigated and confirmed these reports through its 2018 call for evidence. The government then consulted widely with industry and passed legislation in January 2021 to bring all pre-paid funeral plan providers and intermediaries within the FCA regulatory perimeter. This has ensured that 1.6 million funeral plan customers are, for the first time, protected by compulsory and robust regulation.

Personal Care Services: VAT

Matt Vickers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support his Department provides to help (a) hair and (b) beauty businesses with VAT rates.

Nigel Huddleston: VAT is the UK’s third largest tax forecast to raise £176 billion in 2024/25, helping to fund key spending priorities, such as the NHS, education and defence. The Government recognises that VAT can disproportionately impact particular sectors, including the hair and beauty sector. However, VAT is a broad-based tax on consumption and the 20 per cent standard rate applies to most goods and services. Any request for a new VAT relief, such as in the form of a reduced rate, should be viewed in the context of over £50 billion of requests the Government has received since the EU referendum.

Safe Hands Plans

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether Fairer Finance and Dignity raised issues regarding Safe Hands Funeral Plans in meetings with his Department in (a) 2017 and (b) 2018.

Bim Afolami: During a wide-ranging meeting with industry in July 2017 to discuss pre-paid funeral plans, some concerns about Safe Hands funeral plans were raised with HM Treasury.In response, officials advised that such concerns should be reported to the FCA, reflecting the fact that HM Treasury has no investigatory or enforcement powers of its own.

Financial Conduct Authority

Chris Law: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what criteria the Financial Conduct Authority uses to decide what markets to (a) monitor and (b) intervene in.

Bim Afolami: The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 establishes the framework for financial services regulation. It provides for the Treasury and Parliament, through legislation, to determine which activities, products and markets are regulated and fall within the remit of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 also gives the FCA a set of statutory objectives and the appropriate regulatory tools and powers to pursue those objectives. The question of how the FCA monitors and intervenes in the markets it regulates, in order to fulfil its statutory functions, is a matter for the FCA, which is operationally independent from Government. The FCA will respond to the Honourable Member by letter on this matter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.

Financial Services Compensation Scheme

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of changing the terms of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme to (a) protect savers when (i) banks and (ii) building societies merge and (b) increase the level of protection for accounts that originated under separate banking licences.

Bim Afolami: The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) carries out its deposit protection function within rules set by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). Under PRA rules, customer deposits held by authorised banks, building societies and credit unions in UK establishments are protected by the FSCS up to £85,000 per person, per banking licence. Under PRA rules, if there is a merger, the relevant firm must normally inform depositors at least one month before it takes effect. They must then give depositors three months to withdraw or transfer any deposit balances above the FSCS compensation limit without incurring penalties. The PRA is required to review the deposit protection limit every five years, with the next review due to occur by 2025.

Financial Conduct Authority: Pay

Matt Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Financial Conduct Authority staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Matt Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Payment Systems Regulator staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Matt Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much funding the Financial Conduct Authority provided to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-23 financial year.

Matt Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many Financial Conduct Authority employees were seconded to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum in the 2022-2023 financial year.

Bim Afolami: These are matters for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), which are operationally independent from Government. The FCA and the PSR will respond to the Honourable Member by letter, and a copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House of Commons.

Debt Respite Scheme

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Breathing Space (Debt Respite Scheme) to 180 days.

Bim Afolami: The government launched the Breathing Space scheme on 4 May 2021, and as of February 2024, over 216,000 people in problem debt have benefited from Breathing Space protections. In developing the scheme, the government took the decision that sixty days is an appropriate period for breathing space to last to give individuals the time to engage with debt advice, whilst maintaining fairness and certainty for creditors.

Oil: Imports

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20431, whether HMRC has taken enforcement action on oil originating in Russia and imported from a refinery in India since 21 July 2022.

Nigel Huddleston: HM Revenue and Customs does not comment on operational enforcement matters pertaining to specific import or export scenarios.

Oil: Imports

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20433, (a) how many such consignments have been declared and (b) whether HMRC has taken such enforcement action since 21 July 2022.

Nigel Huddleston: The indirect supply prohibition, concerning Russian Origin imports of Oil and Oil products came into force on 05 December 2022. HMRC publishes UK trade data on the www.uktradeinfo.com website. HM Revenue and Customs does not comment on operational enforcement matters pertaining to specific import or export scenarios.

Home Office

Biometrics: Privacy

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that facial recognition systems are used in a way that maintains the right of the privacy for members of the public.

Chris Philp: Facial recognition technology is used by the police as an identification tool to search an image of an unknown suspect against the images of people taken on arrest and get results in minutes, or to locate people in an intelligence-led way, by scanning live crowds and comparing them with the images of wanted people on a specific watchlist instantaneously, with very high levels of accuracy.The Government supports police use of the technology, which has been helping them to catch criminals, including murderers and rapists, more quickly and accurately. But it is important that the police use it appropriately and there are safeguards in place to ensure this.There is a comprehensive legal framework governing its use. This includes the Data Protection Act 2018, Human Rights Act 1998, Equality Act 2010, Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, national guidance, and published police policies. This means that it can only be used for a policing purpose, where necessary, proportionate and fair.We have ensured that there is effective oversight in this space. The Information Commissioner’s Office, which is sponsored by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, is responsible for upholding data privacy rights. It has issued guidance on facial recognition and has enforcement powers. The Equality and Human Rights Commission, which is sponsored by the Cabinet Office, is responsible for upholding equality and human rights and is also active in this space. His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services is responsible for inspecting, monitoring and reporting on the efficiency and effectiveness of police forces. The courts system also provide oversight in this area.We supported the College of Policing to publish an Authorised Professional Practice (APP) setting out how police forces should use live facial recognition and minimise interference with data privacy, equalities and human rights. The APP includes details on when the police can use it, the categories of people they can look for, the requirement for immediate deletion of unmatched biometric data, and the need to explain how issues such as privacy and equality are addressed.We published a factsheet on police use of facial recognition and explained the different use cases, the safeguards, success stories and legal basis. https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2023/10/29/police-use-of-facial-recognition-factsheet/We also provided funding to the National Physical Laboratory to independently test the algorithms being used by South Wales Police and the Metropolitan Police Service. They found that the algorithms both forces have been using to be highly accurate and fair at the settings they use.We are also undertaking more evaluation work to enhance our understanding of the impact of facial recognition and ensure we are able to continue to balance the benefits against the potential intrusion on privacy.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an estimate with Cabinet colleagues of the number of Afghans in Pakistan who are eligible for reunification with family members resident in the UK under the (a) Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy and (b) Afghan citizens resettlement scheme.

Tom Pursglove: The Government remains committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan. This includes eligible immediate family members of those being resettled under both the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS). Public data on the number of Afghans in Pakistan who are eligible to join family members already resettled under both the ARAP and ACRS is unavailable. However; the latest published statistics, summarised at Afghan Resettlement Programme: operational data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk), show that, at the end of December 2023, 14,423 people have been relocated to the UK under the ARAP so far, and a further 10,520 have been relocated under ACRS.

Visas: Married People

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of removing minimum income thresholds for spouse/partner visas.

Tom Pursglove: We do not intend to remove the Minimum Income Requirement (MIR) for spouse / partner visas under Appendix FM to the Immigration Rules.The purpose of the MIR, implemented in July 2012 along with other reforms of the family Immigration Rules, is to ensure family migrants are supported at a reasonable level so they do not become a burden on the taxpayer and they can participate sufficiently in everyday life to facilitate their integration into British society.

Passports: Adoption

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the passport application process for adopted people who do not have access to parental birth records.

Tom Pursglove: His Majesty’s Passport Office engages with customers on a case-by-case basis where they tell us they are unable to obtain supporting documents, including adopted persons who are unable to access birth records.Published HM Passport Office guidance provides advice to customers and passport examiners in considering these cases and what alternative evidence can be accepted when required.

Proceeds of Crime

Peter Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of using recovered monies from the proceeds of crime to provide adaptive sports equipment for police officers.

Chris Philp: Funds recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) are distributed under the Home Office’s Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme (ARIS). The objective of ARIS is to provide agencies with incentives to use POCA powers to recover more criminal assets, with the overall aim of cutting crime and delivering justice.Under the scheme, a proportion of the assets recovered using powers under POCA are redistributed to the agencies involved in the recovery, based on their relative contributions. The current allocation sees ARIS receipts split 50:50 between central government and operational partners.In the spirit of the Scheme, the Government encourages agencies to use ARIS funds to increase asset recovery and, where appropriate, fund local crime fighting priorities for the benefit of the community. However, the use of ARIS allocations/payments is a matter for each agency and is left to their discretion. Further information on ARIS and how funds are spent can be found at: Asset Recovery Statistical Bulletin: Financial years ending March 2018 to March 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Members: Correspondence

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when his Department plans to respond to the letter of 21 February 2024 from the Hon. Member for Hull West and Hessle on behalf of a constituent regarding protocol for notifiable associations.

Chris Philp: The Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire responded on 16 April 2024.

Sleeping Rough: Young People

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government provides support for young people who have been arrested for rough sleeping under the Vagrancy Act.

Chris Philp: The Government has made the unprecedented commitment to end rough sleeping within this Parliament and to fully enforce the Homelessness Reduction Act. We have already embarked on a strategy to shift the focus to prevention and move vulnerable individuals into multi-agency support, backed by £2.4 billion over three years.The government’s ‘Ending Rough Sleeping for Good’ strategy published in 2022 recognises that young people face particular challenges in accessing and maintaining accommodation. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is funding £2.5 million is being provided through the Rough Sleeping Initiative 2022-25 to fund youth services in local areas. The youth interventions provide funding to 8 local authorities across England to develop specialist youth support such as outreach workers, prevention officers and specialist housing for those under 25. The Single Homelessness Accommodation Programme (SHAP) is also delivering over 2,000 homes by March 2025, including 650 homes for young people sleeping rough or at risk of rough sleeping and funding for wrap-around support tailored to individual needs.Where anyone is arrested, Liaison and Diversion (L&D) services have been introduced into police custody, to seek to ensure that vulnerable people are identified and offered access to the help they may need. A key component of these schemes is to provide referrals to community treatment and support services and to provide advice to police custody staff on how best to support people with these vulnerabilities.In certain circumstances, local authorities have a duty to provide accommodation to young people in their area aged under 18 deemed ‘in need’ under the Children’s Act 1989.

Anti-corruption Champion

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer of 23 February 2023 to Question 126744, when he expects to appoint a new anti-corruption champion.

Tom Tugendhat: A new Anti-Corruption Champion will be appointed in due course.Please refer to the recent Question 902335 by the Member for North East Fife, for information on the Anti-Corruption Strategy.

Visas: Sponsorship

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many employers held visa sponsorship licences in (a) 2020, (b) 2021, (c) 2022 and (d) 2023.

Tom Pursglove: The Home Office publishes the latest register of worker and temporary worker licensed sponsors at: Register of licensed sponsors: workers - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) This is a live document that is continually updated.Data that has been updated quarterly since 2014 and includes the number of valid sponsor licences, can be found at: Sponsorship transparency data: Q4 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).The number of organisations annually on the register of sponsors can also be found under Sponsorship Summary Tables at: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Migrant Workers: Pay

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of including hospitality roles on the immigration salary list.

Tom Pursglove: The Government intend to commission the MAC to undertake a full review of the Immigration Salary List. The Government will carefully consider their recommendations once received.

Higher Education: Overseas Students

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that (a) the UK visa system and (b) Government discourse on migration encourage international students to choose (i) Scotland and (ii) the UK as their study destination.

Tom Pursglove: Our offer to international students is extremely competitive, attracting the brightest and best talent the world has to offer, and welcoming people who will contribute to the UK’s excellent academic reputation and help keep our universities competitive on the world stage. The Government appreciates the significant academic, economic and cultural contribution international students make to the UK’s society as a whole.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Carbon Emissions: Suffolk Coastal

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to help support low-income households to transition to net zero in Suffolk Coastal constituency.

Amanda Solloway: The Government is allocating around £20 billion over this Parliament and next improving energy efficiency and low carbon heating of homes, reducing reliance on fossil fuel heating and reducing household energy bills for low income households in Suffolk Coastal constituency as well as other constituencies.The Government will deliver upgrades to over half a million homes in the coming years through Social Housing Decarbonisation, Home Upgrade Grant Schemes and Energy Company Obligation Schemes. The Government has spent over £2 billion to support transition to zero emission vehicles (ZEVs), focusing on reducing barriers to adopting ZEVs, including offsetting higher upfront cost, and accelerating rollout of chargepoint infrastructure.

Heat Pumps

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has had discussions with Ofgem to ensure that heat pump installation companies under the Energy Company Obligation scheme provide (a) a suitable service for customers to assist with problems and (b) provide advice on the optimal use of the new heating system.

Amanda Solloway: All installations under the Energy Company Obligation scheme must be carried out by a TrustMark registered business. Installations of low carbon measures, such as heat pumps, must be carried out in accordance with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) requirements. TrustMark’s Customer Charter sets out the responsibilities of any TrustMark registered installer which includes the registered business ensuring there is a proper testing and hand-over process to ensure the customer knows how installations work and should be maintained. Ofgem has set out a route to redress for any issues arising from measures installed under the scheme, which can be found at: www.ofgem.gov.uk/eco4-complaints-process.

Solar Power: Imports

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department takes to (a) help ensure that imported (i) solar panels and (ii) related components are not produced using forced labour and (b) enforce that standard.

Andrew Bowie: The Government is committed to tackling forced labour in solar supply chains. The UK’s approach is focused on transparency. Over the last two years we have introduced enhanced export controls, new guidance on the risks of doing business in Xinjiang and announced the introduction of financial penalties under the Modern Slavery Act. The Government also supports voluntary due diligence approaches by UK businesses. The UK’s main solar trade association is leading industry’s response by developing and piloting the Solar Stewardship Initiative to further develop a responsible, transparent, and sustainable solar value chain. We will continue to keep our policy response under review.

Energy: Price Caps

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department has taken to ensure that people living in residential properties with third party energy supplies can be covered by the energy price cap.

Amanda Solloway: The price cap was applied to domestic default tariffs to address a specific issue identified by the CMA in how suppliers priced these tariffs. No such issue was identified for commercial contracts, such as those procured by landlords to serve tenants. Consumers supplied via landlords are protected under Ofgem’s Maximum Resale Price Provisions. On 5 April, Government published a summary of responses to the domestic customers on non-domestic tariffs CfE, summarising the issues identified and the actions being taken to address the issues. Government will consider whether any further actions are required once the current measures being undertaken have embedded.

District Heating

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment he has made of trends in energy bills over the last 24 months for people living in residential properties with third party communal heating systems.

Amanda Solloway: The Department does not collect energy bill data for communal heating consumers. We are introducing regulation from Spring 2025 to appoint Ofgem as the heat network regulator and will provide Ofgem powers to monitor communal heat prices. The Government has already invested over £55 million on Heat Network support through the Energy Bills Discount Scheme, which is estimated to have reduced the average bill per supported customer by £1200 over the last year.

Heat Pumps

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Government meets its heat pump installation targets.

Amanda Solloway: The Government is committed to growing the market to 600,000 heat pump installations a year by 2028. We are supporting installations through schemes like the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, Social Housing Decarbonisation Scheme and Energy Company Obligation. From 2025, we expect the Future Homes Standard and the Clean Heat Market Mechanism to support further market growth. The Government is supporting the supply chain, through Heat Pump Investment Accelerator Competition for manufacturers and the Heat Training Grant. We are also consulting on changes to Permitted Development Rights to make it easier for people who want a heat pump to install one.

Solar Power: Manufacturing Industries

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps her Department (a) is taking and (b) plans to take to (i) support and (ii) enhance the domestic solar manufacturing sector.

Andrew Bowie: Solar is a mature technology with established global supply chains. Whilst we have no plans for the UK to become self-sufficient in the manufacture of solar panels, supply chain development is a government priority. Government encourages renewable developers accessing its Contracts for Difference scheme to grow the supply chain through the Supply Chain Plan process and supports supply chain innovation through the Energy Entrepreneurs Fund and initiatives funded by UK Research and Innovation. Further actions needed to develop resilient, sustainable and innovative supply chains, as identified by the UK Solar Taskforce, will be outlined in the forthcoming Solar Roadmap.

Offshore Industry: Employment

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2024 to Question 18876 on Offshore Industry: Employment, on what date OEUK shared the underlying data with her Department; and if she will place a copy of that data in the House of Commons Library.

Justin Tomlinson: Offshore Energies UK (OEUK) have shared underlying data pertaining to their workforce estimates at various points in time. Most recently, in December 2023, OEUK has shared a workbook listing regional breakdowns of the oil and gas sector workforce compiled by Experian. The underlying data is commercially sensitive and owned by Experian. Sharing of this data is a matter for them.

Energy: Prices

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment she has made of the potential (a) merits and (b) impact on vulnerable groups of dynamic energy pricing.

Amanda Solloway: Smarter technologies, tariffs, and services, including potentially dynamic energy pricing, can bring benefits for many consumers. At the same time, we recognise that we must have the right consumer protection framework in place, particularly for vulnerable consumers. In February, the Department launched a Call-for-Evidence on Default Tariffs which explores how default tariffs should evolve to work in a future, more dynamic, market. More information can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66019a0065ca2fa78e7da7dc/future-default-tariffs-for-households-call-for-evidence.pdf Additionally, in their future work plan, Ofgem have committed to look at consumer protection in the future market and update their vulnerability strategy, alongside their ongoing work to protect vulnerable consumers.

HyNet

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the Heads of terms agreement with Eni regarding the North-West Hynet project, signed in October 2023, whether she consulted with (a) public bodies, (b) affected communities and (c) other stakeholders on the terms of this agreement; and if she will make it her policy to conduct a public consultation prior to a commercial contract being signed in relation to this project.

Andrew Bowie: The Heads of Terms agreement was primarily commercial. No formal consultation was required or undertaken. Before granting an economic licence to authorise the implementation of carbon dioxide transport and storage activities, the Secretary of State is required to give notice of the proposal to do so in accordance with Section 9 of the Energy Act 2023, as well as consider any representations or objections which are duly made.

Aquind: Electricity Interconnectors

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, pursuant to the Answer of 6 February 2024 to Question 12098 on Aquind: Electricity Interconnectors, whether she has received the representations required for the re-determination of the application.

Justin Tomlinson: The relevant representations have not yet been finalised or submitted.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero: Complaints

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she plans to publish the (a) nature and (b) content of concerns raised by the Ministry of Defence once they have been raised formally through appropriate channels.

Justin Tomlinson: The Ministry of Defence has indicated its concerns relate to national security. It is therefore unlikely the content of the concerns will be published.

HyNet

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has committed (a) tax-payer and (b) tariff-backed guarantees to the North-West Hynet project.

Andrew Bowie: The Government has announced up to £20 billion for the early deployment of CCUS in the UK and aims to establish four clusters by 2030, including the Track-1 HyNet cluster. No contracts have yet been awarded through the Cluster Sequencing process. The form and amount of support provided to projects is subject to ongoing negotiations. Final decisions on whether to award support will be subject to achieving value for money outcomes for taxpayers and consumers. To maximise participation, diversity, and resilience in the Cluster Sequencing process, we have also supported early-stage design work in industrial clusters, via the existing Industrial Decarbonisation Challenge Fund, which is run by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI). They announced the outcome of the challenge in 2021, committing up to £171m across nine projects, including £33m to projects in the HyNet cluster, crowding in private sector co-funding.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero: Oral Questions

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the oral Answer of the Minister for Energy Security and Net Zero to the Question from the hon. Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston of 19 September 2023, Official Report, column 1231, when he plans to write to the hon. Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston.

Justin Tomlinson: The then Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, the Rt. Hon. Graham Stuart, wrote to the Hon. Member on 11 April 2024.

Electricity: Trade Competitiveness

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of recoupling the GB and EU day-ahead electricity markets without recoupling the intraday markets on the competitiveness of wholesale electricity markets.

Andrew Bowie: In 2021, HMG consulted on current arrangements for trading electricity on power exchanges in the GB wholesale electricity market and outlined proposals to support efficient cross-border trading. That consultation focused on day-ahead trading but also sought views on the intraday timeframe. HMG’s consultation response outlined the intention to legislate to achieve a single GB clearing price in the day-ahead timeframe, subject to engagement with the UK-EU Specialised Committee on Energy, industry and stakeholders to ensure HMG is well placed to make a final decision on progressing legislation. HMG confirmed development of efficient arrangements in other timeframes should remain under review. https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/re-coupling-great-britain-electricity-auctions-for-cross-border-trade

Energy Charter Treaty

Wendy Chamberlain: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the Written Statement of 22 February 2024 on UK withdrawal from the Energy Charter Treaty, HCWS279, what her planned timetable is for withdrawal from the Energy Charter Treaty.

Justin Tomlinson: The UK has initiated the process to withdraw from the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) and will provide notification to the ECT depository in Portugal as soon as possible.

Prime Minister

International Criminal Court

Patrick Grady: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, whether he considers the International Criminal Court to be a foreign court.

Rishi Sunak: The clue is in the name.